On Sunday, tensions between Ukraine and Russia flared. According to Ukrainian authorities, a Russian coast guard vessel rammed, opened fire on and eventually seized Ukrainian ships in the Black Sea.
In Washington, President Trump fired off a tweet that opened with “Europe has to pay their fair share for Military Protection” while remaining silent on the clash in the Black Sea. As Russia pursues increasingly belligerent action in Ukraine, Trump must stand firmly and clearly against Moscow’s aggression.
The conflict began when two Ukrainian ships and a tugboat belonging to the Ukrainian navy attempted to travel through the Kerch Strait to reach other ports in Ukraine. Russia said that the ships entered Russian waters as Ukraine accused Russia of ramming one of its ships.
Later, the Ukrainain ships came under fire from the Russian coast guard and were eventually boarded and seized after two crew members were wounded.
In response to the incident that it created, Russia closed the strait, blocking the passage with a tanker ship lodged under a recently built Russian bridge.
Closing the narrow body of water that connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Azov amounts to an effective blockade of southeastern Ukrainian cities near to the Russian-backed breakaway provinces.
Russia has not yet indicated how long the waterway will remain closed to civilian traffic, but the escalation and sharp response to cut-off shipping lanes could well be part of a broader effort to squeeze the region of supplies, as conflict in Donetsk and Luhansk simmers in flagrant disregard of international law and a 2003 treaty that designated the Kerch Strait as shared waters.
President Trump must quickly condemn Russia’s actions and make clear that there is no U.S. support for the Kremlin’s belligerent push to claim territory and control of international waters.
There must be no question of where the U.S. stands when it comes to the blatant violation of international laws and norms. Allowing such aggression to pass unchecked and unmet with at least a rebuke would signal to authoritarian leaders like the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Russia’s Vladimir Putin that they are free to do as they like as long as it doesn’t immediately and directly threaten U.S. interests.
