No, don't send the US Navy into the Sea of Azov

The U.S. should provide tangible diplomatic and military support to Ukraine. But it would be very ill-advised for the U.S. Navy to challenge Russia for access control over the Sea of Azov.

Russia’s seizure of 23 Ukrainian sailors and 3 naval vessels is without moral or reasonable political justification. It reflects only Russian President Vladimir Putin’s desire to make Ukraine a vassal state. In turn, Putin should find an international response defined by escalating sanctions and the provision of greater military equipment to Ukraine. But the Navy’s entering the Sea of Azov, as suggested on Monday by the Atlantic Council’s Anders Aslund, is a very bad idea.