Russia returned to Ukraine on Monday the three vessels of the Ukrainian Navy that were detained in the Kerch Strait for illegally crossing Russia's maritime border, the Foreign Ministry said
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th November, 2019) Russia returned to Ukraine on Monday the three vessels of the Ukrainian Navy that were detained in the Kerch Strait for illegally crossing Russia's maritime border, the Foreign Ministry said.
"On November 18, three vessels of the Ukrainian Navy, which violated in November 2018 the border of the Russian Federation in an intended provocation by Kiev in the area of the Kerch Strait and were detained by Russian law enforcement agencies, were returned to the Ukrainian side," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
"The vessels mentioned above are material evidence in the criminal case that continues in Russia regarding the illegal crossing of our border. Their transfer to the Ukrainian side for responsible storage has become possible because Russia's relevant authorities have completed the necessary investigative activities toward these vessels, and their staying on the territory of the Russian Federation is not needed for continuing the criminal procedure," the ministry specified.
Russia remains committed to firmly suppressing any provocation at its borders, the foreign ministry emphasized.
