by Anton Zverev (Reuters) - Sources close to the Russian military said on Thursday that Russian naval forces in the Black Sea had been put on heightened alert to discourage Ukraine from trying to disrupt the soccer World Cup as the tournament got under way. However, the Defence Ministry itself dismissed the reports, saying in a statement: “The forces … [Read more...]
U.S. Navy Will Stay In Black Sea Despite Russian Warning
by Steve Scherer, Reuters - The United States will maintain its presence in the Black Sea despite a Russian warning that a U.S. destroyer patrolling there undermined regional security, the U.S. Navy Secretary said. The USS Porter entered the Black Sea this month, drawing heavy criticism from Moscow. Turkey and Romania are expected to push for a bigger NATO presence in the … [Read more...]
U.S. Navy Destroyer in Black Sea Stokes Tensions with Russia
MOSCOW, June 10 (Reuters) - The Russian Foreign ministry said Moscow would respond to a U.S. naval ship's entry into the Black Sea with unspecified measures, saying it and other deployments were designed to ratchet up tensions ahead of a NATO summit, the RIA news agency reported. Russian state media reported that the USS Porter, a U.S. naval destroyer, entered the Black Sea … [Read more...]
Shell Seals Offshore Oil and Gas Deal With Bulgaria
By Slav Okov (Bloomberg) -- Royal Dutch Shell Plc signed a five-year contract for oil and natural gas exploration in the deep waters of the Black Sea off the Bulgarian coast, which will enable the Balkan nation to reduce its reliance on Russian energy imports. Shell plans to invest 18.6 million euros ($20.5 million) to explore gas and oil deposits in the Silistar block, … [Read more...]
Turkey, Russia Fallout Over Downed Warplane Deepens at Two Ports
By Selcan Hacaoglu (Bloomberg) -- Turkey released three of four Russian ships that it detained this month at a Black Sea port for maritime safety violations, according to data on the website of Port State Control for the Black Sea. The action at the port of Samsun came after Russia held five Turkish ships for port inspections at Novorossiysk, according to two port … [Read more...]