US, Ukraine launch joint maritime exercises in Black Sea
Ukrainian and American naval forces are taking part in joint maritime drills dubbed Sea Breeze 2014, which began on Monday in the northwestern part of the Black Sea and will last till September 10. ● Today in the north-west part of the Black Sea, we are beginning the joint Navy exercises of Ukraine and the US, known as eSea Breeze 2014f. The exercises will continue until September 10. The aim is to set up safety measures in areas dangerous to ships,h Colonel Andrey Lysenko, spokesman for Ukraine's National Security Council, told reporters as cited by AP. The objective of the exercises is gan international operation on establishing and securing a maritime safety zone in a crisis area,h the Ukrainian Defense Ministry said earlier. The drills are part of a program for Kiev-Washington defense cooperation in 2014 and were approved by a presidential decree on March 25, it added. The Sea Breeze exercises come just three days after a peace deal was reached between Kiev and rebel troops following months of bloody fighting. The US and NATO repeatedly accused Russia of ginvading Ukraine,h supporting gpro-Russian separatistsh and deepening the crisis. However, no convincing evidence has been provided for such statements.
■ US-led "Sea Breeze 2014" and "Rapid Trident" in Ukraine aim at more than containing Russia