Russia, Ukraine to Manage Sevastopol Moorings Together

[mastodon]

Russian Defence Minister Sergey Ivanov announced on Wednesday that Russia and Ukraine will have joint control over internal and external moorings in Sevastopol. The announcement was made after talks between Ivanov and his Ukrainian counterpart Aleksander Kuzmuk. The joint control will be effective starting July 1, the Russian Minister announced and the practical actions will start on July 20. Ivanov also reported that most of disagreements were agreed upon and many particular actions were coordinated.

Additionally, the ministers discussed questions concerning the Russian Black Sea Navy re-equipment and conducting the Black Sea Force joint military training. The Russian Minister said that the problems of ABM defence were not discussed in detail at the meeting, but stressed that Russia and Ukraine have no principle disagreements on this question.
//RIA-Novosti

[JetSet]

Just a question- who was control of the moorings prior to this, Ukraine or Russia? I would guess Ukraine, but stranger things have been true.

[TuchajBay]

The Russian do not give up so easly.TB

Ukraine criticizes Moscow for suggestion that Russian be Ukraine's second official language
http://www.thepost.kiev.ua/main/9393/

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) - Ukraine's Foreign Ministry criticized Russian Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Khristenko on Thursday for what it called his unreasoned call to make Russian Ukraine's second official language. Khristenko said this week that such a move would be in Ukraine's and Russia's interests and that bilingualism is a historical fact in Ukraine. Khristenko spoke at a news conference in Moscow on Wednesday. Undoubtedly, these statements don't assist in strengthening a climate of trust and mutual understanding in bilateral relations, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry expressed regret that Khristenko's words came during a period of increasingly warm relations between the two states, which experienced years of friction. The language issue remains one of the most sensitive between the countries. Ukrainian nationalists are wary of a return to the dominance of Russian culture, which prevailed during the Soviet era. Many Russian speakers, in turn, claim there is growing intolerance toward them in some parts of the country. Ethnic Russians comprise some 20 percent of Ukraine's population of nearly 50 million. The ministry's statement was the second official comment in a week aimed at Russian politicians. Last Sunday, Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov said the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea should belong to Russia instead of Ukraine.

The Moscow mayor's attempt to cast doubt on Ukraine's territorial integrity and legal boundaries between the two sovereign states goes against international legal principles, ministry spokesman Serhiy Borodenkov said Tuesday. Crimea, which became part of Soviet Ukraine in the 1950s, is mostly populated by ethnic Russians, many of whom have strong ties to Russia. Relations between the two neighbors have been clouded over such issues as the division of the former Soviet Black Sea Fleet and the future of Crimea. A fleet division agreement paved the way for closer ties, which have grown warmer since Russian President Vladimir Putin came to power 19 months ago.