NATO Concerned Over Situation in Azov Sea, Engaged in Dialogue With Kiev - Stoltenberg

BRUSSELS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 03rd October, 2018) NATO is concerned over the situation in the Sea of Azov, and is discussing it with Ukraine, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday.

"The situation in Ukraine, around Ukraine, in the Azov Sea, in Crimea is something we always discuss ... We are of course concerned about the situation in the Azov Sea. We have seen that commercial vessels have been impeded by the Russian presence there. And also the Russian presence in Crimea and the activities connected to the new bridge," Stoltenberg said at a press conference, as quoted on NATO's official website.

The alliance's chief emphasized that all the NATO allies expressed "strong support" for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.

In March, a Crimea-registered vessel Nord with its 10-strong crew was detained by the Ukrainian Border Guard Service in neutral waters of the Sea of Azov.

Moscow has demanded the immediate release of the illegally detained crew and the return of the vessel to its legitimate owner. A Ukrainian court, however, authorized the arrest of the captain, with Ukrainian border guards preventing the crew from leaving the country. Following the incident, the Russian authorities have pledged to enhance security along the peninsula's borders.

Kiev has since been accusing Moscow of blocking the passage of foreign ships going through the Kerch Strait connecting the Sea of Azov with the Black Sea. According to the Crimean border protection department of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), checks of foreign vessels crossing the strait are carried out in accordance with the international law of the sea.