Moscow Pulls Back Land Forces From Ukrainian Border but Not Its Navy in Black Sea
Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor Volume: 18 Issue: 67
Russian ships in the Black Sea (Source: TASS)
Many observers are treating Russia’s pullback of land forces from the Ukrainian border as the end of the crisis even some of those experts who acknowledge the Kremlin has not given up its aggressive posturing against Ukraine (Voennoe Obozrenie, April 25). Yet that belligerent stance may acquire a more immediate dimension than many currently recognize because Russia has conspicuously not reduced its naval presence in the Black Sea. Instead, Moscow has announced new maritime exclusion zones around Crimea until the autumn, beyond those it earlier imposed in the Sea of Azov (Voennoe Obozrenie, April 24; Ekho Rossii, April 25). Russia justifies this move by saying that it plans to conduct military maneuvers there this summer, but the naval ships it is keeping in the theater ostensibly for those upcoming
Ukraine, Turkey Plan Joint Exercises in Black Sea
26 Apr 2021
Ukraine and Turkey will hold joint military drills in the Black Sea in late 2021, Ukraine’s Ministry of Defense announced Saturday.
Representatives from Ukraine and Turkey’s armed forces met virtually on April 24 to coordinate plans for the exercises.
Ukraine’s naval forces command “took part in the initial conference on training planning” of the Turkish Navy’s “Dogu Akdeniz 2021” or “Eastern Mediterranean 2021” drill, “which is to take place at the end of the year in the Western Mediterranean,” according to a press release by Ukraine’s defense ministry.
“Representatives of the Ukrainian Navy discussed the format of Ukrainian participation, in particular, the involvement of Navy officers in the work of the exercise’s multinational headquarters, as well as their training onboard the Turkish Navy’s ADA class (MILGEM) corvettes,” the statement read.
Ukraine must prepare for Putin’s next escalation now UkraineAlert by Vadym Denysenko, Ihor Popov, Ihor Tyshkevych, Ilya Kusa
Russian forces practice amphibious landings in Russian-occupied Crimea. April 22, 2021. (Sergei Malgavko/TASS via REUTERS)
Ukraine spent much of April in the international headlines as global audiences watched to see if a massive Russian military build-up along the Ukrainian border would become a precursor to a major escalation in the simmering seven-year conflict between the two countries. Fears of an imminent Kremlin offensive appeared to ease on April 22 when Russia announced plans to begin withdrawing troops from border zone positions. However, few are taking anything for granted.
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