Turkey has threatened Russia with “rising tension” over an inspection of a ship in the Black Sea upon which the Russians opened a warning shot.
Authorities in Ankara expressed concern over the incident involving the Turkish freighter Sukra Okan, which the Russian army boarded for inspection on August 13. Turkey has warned Russia of further escalation of the situation in the Black Sea if such incidents continue.
“The Russian side has received due attention to the need to avoid such attempts that could increase tension in the Black Sea,” said the government of Turkish President Recep Erdogan. A few days after the incident, Ankara did not comment on what had happened.
Russia’s Black Sea Fleet patrol vessel Vasily Bykov opened warning fire on Sunday at a civilian cargo ship bound for the Ukrainian port of Izmail. According to the Moscow Defense Ministry, this happened after the ship’s captain ignored calls to stop for inspection.
A group of Russian military personnel then landed aboard the ship and inspected it. After the inspection, the ship was allowed to continue its journey to the Ukrainian port.
Incident in the Black Sea. Russia risks war with NATO
The situation in the Black Sea escalated in the second half of July after Russia refused to renew the agreement allowing the safe export of grain from Ukrainian ports. Russian drones and missiles have hit several Ukrainian port facilities and grain silos in or near the Black Sea.
Russia risks direct war with NATO in the Black Sea, said former Supreme Allied Commander of NATO Forces in Europe, James Stavridis.
The retired US Navy admiral, who commanded Allied forces in Europe from 2009 to 2013, believes that actions such as inspection of a Turkish ship by the Russian armycould force Kiev’s allies to intervene to prevent Ukraine’s grain-dependent economy from suffocating.
“Russian actions in the international waters of the Black Sea pose a real risk of escalating into a naval war between NATO and the Russian Federation,” Stavridis said. And he added that NATO “is not supplying arms and money to Ukraine just to watch Russia choke its economy with an illegal blockade.”
Source: Do Rzeczy
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
