Why did American warships leave the Black Sea
The US Navy has withdrawn its ships from the Black Sea, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said. "Newspaper.Ru" was looking into what this decision might be related to.
According to Kirby, the American command considered the withdrawal of US Navy ships from the Black Sea "a prudent step." He noted that in this way Washington makes it clear to everyone that the United States is not interested in provoking a conflict. Kirby added that he still has nothing to say about when the US Navy ships will return back.
The United States and NATO have been actively present in the Black Sea for eight years - since the beginning of the armed conflict in southeastern Ukraine in 2014. In 2021, the activity of their presence increased, in particular, ships from France, Great Britain, and the Netherlands began to enter the Black Sea more often.
Earlier, an incident occurred in the Black Sea - Ukrainian mines, with which the AFU tried to prevent the passage of Russian Navy ships to Odessa and other Black Sea ports, broke off their anchors and drifted. The FSB of Russia warned that anchor mines installed by the Ukrainian Navy due to cable breakage could drift towards the Bosphorus Strait and further into the seas of the Mediterranean Basin. There can be up to 420 minutes in the Black Sea. The situation, the Russian side emphasizes, "is aggravated by the presence of river mines that are not adapted to use in conditions of sea waves."
He noted that such actions were taken by the command of the US Navy "mainly so that during the fighting someone would not hook their ships, because they are not going to interfere in the conflict, and the result of the incident may be the most deplorable."
"Anything can happen: a US Navy destroyer can wander into the wrong place and get hit by a random missile, run into a drifting mine and then have to figure out whose mine it is and to whom to make claims. Since they are not going to interfere in the conflict, and they are not needed there, it is easiest for them to withdraw ships from the Black Sea and not to shine," Kupriyanov said.
According to retired Admiral, former commander of the Black Sea Fleet Vladimir Komoyedov, the United States is now strengthening air and land groups of troops in Europe and concentrating forces in the Mediterranean Sea, "wanting to protect NATO allies." According to him, for the US Navy, "there is not such a fundamental difference where to be - in the Black Sea or the Mediterranean."
"US ships from the waters of the Mediterranean Sea may well reach quite far with both aircraft and missiles. Of course, it would be easier to do this from the Black Sea, but there is a strong Russian Navy group there - if they start using force, they will get an answer. The Russian Navy also has a small group in the Mediterranean Sea, but it is not omnipotent, and the US Navy ships will be there in the zone of their domination," Komoyedov said.
According to a military expert, ex-Rear Admiral Mikhail Chekmasov, the Pentagon's statement that the United States withdrew ships from the Black Sea during the crisis "does not look too convincing."
"Because in all previous years, nothing prevented them from entering the Black Sea, including in violation of the 1936 Montreux Convention. We can recall the events of 2008 - the armed conflict in South Ossetia - when US Navy ships entered the Black Sea under the guise of delivering humanitarian aid and even moored in Batumi," Chekmasov said.
"It is very unpleasant for the political and military leadership of Ukraine to hear this. They were denied entry into NATO, direct support, and, to date, they have been denied the supply of heavy weapons. And now they refuse even a partner's presence," Volkov summed up.
Irina Alshayeva
