Russia fires on and seizes Ukrainian naval ships, crew, in Black Sea standoff
On Monday, Russia acknowledged that its coast guard had opened fire on three Ukrainian vessels Sunday and seized the ships and their crews during an incident near the Kerch Strait, a narrow waterway connecting the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov. The same three Ukrainian naval vessels — two gunboats and a tugboat — had been involved in a separate incident Sunday in which Russia's coast guard tried to intercept the ships and rammed the tugboat. Russia says Ukraine's vessels were making an unauthorized trip through Russian waters in a deliberate provocation; Ukraine denied any territorial incursion and accused Russia of military aggression.
The Kerch Strait runs between Russia and Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula Russia annexed in 2014. Russia recently built a bridge spanning the strait, connecting Crimea to the Russian mainland. The new standoff threatens to dangerously inflame simmering tensions between the two countries, and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said early Monday he would ask parliament to consider authorizing martial law over the incident. You can see footage of the Russian ship ramming the Ukrainian tug, plus a map of the area, in this CNN clip.
The United Nations Security Council will hold an emergency meeting on the escalating Ukraine-Russia tensions on Monday, American U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley says, and both the European Union and NATO have urged restraint and a de-escalation, especially in regards to Moscow's move Sunday to block off the strait for an unspecified period. The Kerch Strait and Sea of Azov are shared territorial waters under a 2003 treaty between Ukraine and Russia, but Moscow has been increasingly enforcing access to the strait since 2015.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A continued closure of the waterway would amount to an economic blockade of several strategically and economically important Ukrainian ports, The Associated Press reports, including Mariupol, the closest government-held city to the breakaway Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, controlled by Russian-backed separatists.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
4 ways to give back this holiday season
The Explainer If your budget is feeling squeezed, remember that money is not the only way you can be generous around the holidays
By Becca Stanek, The Week US Published
-
4 tips for hosting an ecofriendly Thanksgiving
The Week Recommends Coming together for the holidays typically produces a ton of waste, but with proper preparation, you can have an environmentally friendly gathering.
By Theara Coleman, The Week US Published
-
Jussie Smollet conviction overturned on appeal
Speed Read The Illinois Supreme Court overturned the actor's conviction on charges of staging a racist and homophobic attack against himself in 2019
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden visits Amazon, says climate legacy irreversible
Speed Read Nobody can reverse America's 'clean energy revolution,' said the president, despite the incoming Trump administration's promises to dismantle climate policies
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
At least 95 dead in Spain flash floods
Speed Read Torrential rainfall caused the country's worst flooding since 1996
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Cuba roiled by island-wide blackouts, Hurricane Oscar
Speed Read The country's power grid collapsed for the fourth time in just two days
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Wildlife populations drop a 'catastrophic' 73%
Speed Read The decline occurred between 1970 and 2020
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Floridians flee oncoming Hurricane Milton
Speed Read The hurricane is expected to cause widespread damage in the state
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Beryl kills 4, knocks out power to 2.7M in Texas
Speed Read Millions now face sweltering heat without air conditioning
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Arid Gulf states hit with year's worth of rain
Speed Read The historic flooding in Dubai is tied to climate change
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
EPA limits carcinogenic emissions at 218 US plants
Speed Read The new rule aims to reduce cancer-causing air pollution in areas like Louisiana's 'Cancer Alley'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published