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Russia sends more warships to Black Sea as Ukraine tensions simmer
- The reinforcement coincides with a huge build-up of Russian troops near eastern Ukraine
- Moscow has also temporarily restricted the movement of foreign warships near Crimea, which it annexed from Kiev in 2014
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Two Russian warships transited the Bosphorus en route to the Black Sea on Saturday and 15 smaller vessels completed a transfer to the sea as Moscow beefs up its naval presence at a time of tense relations with the West and Ukraine.
The reinforcement coincides with a huge build-up of Russian troops near Ukraine, something Moscow calls a temporary defensive exercise, and follows an escalation in fighting in eastern Ukraine between Russian-backed separatists and Ukrainian government forces.
Russia’s relations with Washington, which cancelled the deployment of two of its own warships to the Black Sea last week after fierce Russian protests, are at a post-Cold War low.
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Moscow expelled 10 American diplomats on Friday in retaliation for the expulsion of the same number of Russian envoys from the US over alleged malign activity.
Russia has also temporarily restricted the movement of foreign warships “and other state ships” near Crimea, which it annexed from Ukraine in 2014, a move condemned by both Kiev and Washington.
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