But after new fighting broke out in Ukraine between Ukrainian soldiers and Russian-backed separatists, officials decided not to undertake the transit to unnecessarily escalate the situation, the person said.
The person may frequently change sea movements due to maintenance or shifting of operational plans. This person was expelled for a large number of reasons, including a desire not to attract Moscow during a difficult time, the person said.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu said in an interview with NTV TV that the US had informed Turkey on Wednesday that the ships were not going to the Black Sea. Reuters first reported that the movement was shut down and cited diplomatic sources who, like Çavuşoğlu, did not give a specific reason.
The Pentagon did not want to discuss the possible transportation since the reports first appeared. ‘We regularly operate and conduct operations in the Black Sea and throughout the European Command [area of operations]Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters last week. “And as you know, I’m not going to predict or talk about hypothetical or future operations.”
The person says the ships, the USS Donald Cook and the USS Roosevelt, are in the Mediterranean. They were still a few days away from the Black Sea when the decision was made to scrap the transport so that they were not forced to turn off course.
But some in Kiev were disappointed that the destroyers would not travel to the Black Sea after all, said a former senior Ukrainian official. The US protesters in the region would be welcomed as Russia continues to gather thousands of troops at the eastern Ukrainian border, the person said.
Ukrainian officials are also watching Russian movements suggest they should build along the Kerch Strait to Crimea. The Strait connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Azov, and officials are wary of Russia blocking access to the Black Sea and connecting the mainland with Crimea.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that Russia had announced that it would close part of the Black Sea near the Kerch Strait to foreign warships until October, under the pretext of conducting military exercises. A spokesman said Russia’s actions violated international law and reiterated that Ukraine ‘has the right to regulate shipping in these Black Sea waters’.
U.S. officials note that President Joe Biden has repeatedly reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to Ukraine’s territorial integrity and recently approved an additional $ 125 million lethal aid to help the country defend its borders, including two armed patrol boats and anti-artillery radar. .
And NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said at a joint press conference with Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday that the organization had increased its military presence in the Black Sea region, more with additional air policing and fleet resistance.
“We are committed to helping Ukraine meet its self-defense needs,” he said.
The situation is growing rapidly: Russia has sent more than 85,000 troops to the border in recent weeks, and at least seven Ukrainian soldiers have died since the end of last month amid an increase in violence in the Donbass region. Ukrainian government forces have been struggling there since 2014 by Russia-backed separatists.
The G-7 foreign ministers – representing Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and the European Union – condemned Russia’s build-up to Ukraine’s borders in a statement on Monday. say they are “deeply concerned” about moving.
“These large-scale troop movements, without prior notice, represent threatening and destabilizing activities,” they wrote. “We call on Russia to cease its provocations and immediately step up tensions in line with its international obligations.”
Meanwhile, Pentagon leaders have been monitoring Russia’s military build-up along the border with Ukraine, as well as increasing Russian activity at sea and in the air.
The commander of US troops in Europe on Thursday predicted that there is a “low to medium” probability that Russia will invade Ukraine in the next few weeks.
Gen. Tod Wolters, the head of the US European Command and NATO’s highest-ranking Allied Commander in Europe, gave the shortest rating during a hearing on the military stance on the continent.
“This is very worrying and our vigilance is high,” the four-star general testified, noting that there were significant upheavals in Russian ground, air and maritime forces.
However, under the impression that the threat of a Russian invasion outside would increase or decrease over the next few weeks, Wolters suggested that the threat of an incident could disappear, given the trends observing his order.
“It depends on the power of the force,” Wolters said. “My sense is, with the trend I’re currently seeing, the likelihood of an event will start to decrease.”
Connor O’Brien contributed to this report.