NATO members will review possibility of strengthening presence in Black Sea region – U.S. envoy

13:35, 01.04.2019 1 min read

Members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization are reviewing the possibility of strengthening the alliances abilities in the Black Sea region, U.S.

Permanent Representative to NATO Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison has said.

Certainly, part of our efforts will be to consider the possibility of strengthening our defense in the Black Sea. And the reason for this is Russian aggression against Ukraine. They (Russia) continue their attempts to destabilize Ukraine, they continue the militarization of Crimea, which is part of Ukraine, Hutchinson said at a videoconference on Monday.

We will consider options for what we can still do in the entire Black Sea region. We will be gathering intelligence more actively, there will be more NATO ships, and there are still sanctions that have already been imposed on those involved in the seizure sailors in the Kerch Strait, she said.

Hutchinson called for the release of Ukrainian sailors who were detained during the incident in the Kerch Strait area in November 2018, calling Russia's behavior in this situation unacceptable.