Russia Reinforces the Grouping of Ships in the Black Sea amid NATO Exercises

Two Russian ships make the transition from the Mediterranean to Sevastopol. The Sea Breeze NATO exercise involves 32 ships from the United States and other NATO countries. Amid the NATO exercises, Russia is strengthening the grouping of ships in the Black Sea at the expense of the Moskva missile cruiser and the Admiral Essen frigate with Caliber cruise missiles. "The flagship of the Black Sea Fleet, the guards missile cruiser Moskva and the frigate Admiral Essen, are passing the Black Sea straits of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus," the Russian Black Sea Fleet said on Monday, July 5. The ships are currently making the transition from the Mediterranean Sea to the permanent base of Sevastopol in the annexed Crimea. "After arriving in Sevastopol, the ships will replenish material stocks, carry out a scheduled technical inspection and continue to perform tasks as intended in accordance with the combat training plan of the fleet forces," the Black Sea Fleet said in a statement. Sea Breeze Exercises Major Sea Breeze maneuvers are currently taking place in the Black Sea with the participation of US ships, other NATO members and their partners. They involve 32 warships, 40 aircraft and 5,000 military personnel from 17 NATO member countries, as well as alliance partners. In total, it is planned to involve military personnel from 32 countries. According to the U.S. 6th Operational Fleet, the exercises are practicing combat operations at sea, on land and in the air, including landing, anti-submarine and anti-aircraft operations. On June 26, the American missile destroyer USS Ross entered the Black Sea. It can carry up to 56 Tomahawk cruise missiles with a range of 1.6 thousand km. Destroyer Defender incident The British destroyer Defender and the Dutch frigate Evertsen are also in the Black Sea since June 14. On June 23, the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation reported that the Russian military opened warning fire at the course of the destroyer Defender, which, according to Moscow, violated the Russian border in the Black Sea near Cape Fiolent (Crimea). London has denied this information. According to British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the Defender was legally in international waters off the Crimean Peninsula. "I think it (the ship - Ed.) could fully and reasonably use international waters. The important point is that we do not recognize the Russian annexation of Crimea," Johnson said. The Dutch frigate Evertsen incident On June 29, the Dutch Ministry of Defense accused Russian aircraft of unsafe actions near the Dutch Navy frigate Evertsen in the Black Sea. According to the Dutch military, the incident took place on June 24, when the frigate was near Crimea: Russian fighters flew dangerously close to Evertsen for several hours, feigning attacks. The Russian military has denied this. The Russian Defense Ministry said that the Russian planes were taken into the air in order to "prevent violation of the Russian state border," since the Dutch frigate was heading for the Kerch Strait.