January 28, the National Defense Management Center of the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that at 19:00 Moscow time (00:00 Beijing time on the 29th), the destroyer Porter of the United States Navy sailed into the Black Sea.
The ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet began to monitor their movements.
Earlier Thursday, the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine announced that Porter would cross the strait into the Black Sea and participate in maritime security in the area, according to Tass.
Sources said that U.S. Navy ships and aircraft will regularly enter the Black Sea to support allies and NATO countries. At present, there is another U.S. destroyer USS Donald Cook, which entered the Black Sea on the 23rd of this month.
Last November, the Russian Black Sea Fleet held a “fortress” mobile anti-ship missile system exercise in Crimea in response to U.S. Navy ships entering the Black Sea.
For its part, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued many statements emphasizing that the maintenance of the military presence of foreign powers in the Black Sea is not constructive for the stability of the region.
