U.S. ships have nothing to do near Russian coasts - Russian deputy FM
MOSCOW. April 13 (Interfax) - The presence of United States warships in the Black Sea is a provocative step, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said.
"I wouldn't like to go too much into particulars of various interpretations of what freedom of navigation and freedom of the seas is, especially in this context. I know one thing: American ships have absolutely nothing to do near our coasts, and this is a purely provocative undertaking. It's provocative in the literal sense of this word: they're testing our patience and getting on our nerves. This won't work," Ryabkov told journalists.
Travelling "thousands of miles away" from U.S. Navy bases always involves a geopolitics element, Ryabkov said.
"Apparently seeing itself as the queen of the seas [...] the U.S. should understand after all that the risks of various incidents are very high. We warn the U.S. that it should steer clear of Crimea and our Black Sea coast. This would be to their own benefit," Ryabkov said.