Moscow, Russia:
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday accused Washington of involvement in an incident involving a British destroyer off the coast of Moscow-annexed Crimea.
Last week, Russia stated it fired warning shots to ward off the British navy’s HMS Defender as it passed close to the Crimean peninsula in the Black Sea in what it stated was a violation of its territorial waters.
“This, of course, was a provocation — that is completely obvious,” Putin stated in the course of his annual televised phone-in.
“It was complex and was carried out not only by the British, but also by the Americans.”
As his proof, Putin stated that prior to the UK ship entered waters claimed by Russia last week, an “American strategic reconnaissance aircraft” had taken off from a NATO military airfield in Greece. He did not provide any more specifics.
Britain has defended the ship’s route, saying the HMS Defender was generating “an innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law”.
Russia annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014 and claims the waters about the peninsula as element of its territory. Most nations do not recognise the takeover and stand behind Ukraine’s claims to the waters.
Putin stated Wednesday that “we on our territory fight for ourselves, for our future”.
“Even if we sank that ship, the world wouldn’t have been on the verge of World War III, because those who are doing this know that they couldn’t be the winners in this war,” he stated.
Incidents involving Western aircraft and ships are not uncommon at Russia’s borders, particularly in the course of heightened tensions with Washington, Brussels and London, but seldom outcome in open fire.
Earlier this month, Putin held his initially in-individual meeting with US President Joe Biden at a summit in Geneva aimed at restoring relations with Washington that are at their lowest in years.
While each leaders spoke positively about their initially in-individual meeting, ties in between Russia and the United States stay strained.
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