Turkey has recently notified Russia of the upcoming passage of US warships into the Black Sea. Many of our politicians, experts and ordinary people immediately linked this American campaign with demonstrative support for Ukraine. And they were not mistaken. Moreover, the US Navy has officially recognized this. True, even here it was not without a ritual anti-Russian attack – this time a new voyage of American ships “will mean a special message for the Russian Federation.”
So said one of the representatives of the US Navy. And he added that the American leadership is preparing to take such measures in connection with the buildup of Russian troops near the borders of Ukraine. The hypocritical stupidity (if not cooler) of such a statement is more than obvious. Not Russia, but Ukraine, since the end of January, has begun to bring echelons with warriors and military equipment to the Donbass. And it has already amassed more than a 100,000-strong group there, from which you can expect anything. And we didn’t hear any screams about this from Washington.
In order to fend off this potential threat, Russia also decided to make a “special message” for Kiev – it brought its regional grouping into high alert and strengthened it. Everything. But of course, the United States has long been behaving like a rogue football referee who constantly points out a penalty kick at Moscow's goal. Nothing new. Empty chatter and in the words about the “special message” for Russia. The Black Sea has long been accustomed to the appearance of US ships, as to a red mullet fish.
Destroyers and frigates under the stars and stripes scurry about there almost without leaving, in a shuttle way. When they are going to climb from the Mediterranean into the Black Sea, then, as it should be according to the rules of the international Montreux Convention (1936), they ask Turkey for permission to pass through the Bosphorus. Moreover, they have the right to “graze” in the Black Sea only for 21 days, and the total tonnage of ships should not exceed 30,000 tons. Ankara is following this closely.
Consequently, if we discard the propaganda declaration of the Americans about the purpose of a new entry of their ships into the Black Sea, then in the bottom line we will see only an attempt at the “pressure” that has become customary for a long time on our southern sea borders. Well, the moral “support for the pants” of Kiev. And this is nothing new. Moreover, such “pressure” even benefits our Black Sea Fleet – its ships do not need to play the costly role of a conditional enemy when practicing exercises, – a real enemy (with the noise of its propellers, with communication signals, speed, etc.) maneuvers alongside. And this allows the Black Sea residents to be in good fighting shape and keep the powder dry. The US ships will behave in a law-abiding manner, nothing bad will happen to them …
But here's another curious thing. Last Friday, the Turkish Foreign Ministry told TASS that two US warships will pass on April 14 and 15 through the Bosphorus to the Black Sea and will stay there until May 4 and 5. A day earlier, CNN, citing a source in the US Department of Defense, reported that the US is indeed considering sending warships to the Black Sea in the coming weeks to demonstrate its support to Ukraine. But the same US military department did not confirm this information to a TASS correspondent. It is difficult to understand yet – the Pentagon is “playing the fool”, bluffing, or has changed plans. Or maybe someone there realizes that there is little use in ship trips to the Black Sea. And entering it just for the sake of symbolic support for Ukraine, wasting ten million dollars, is hardly reasonable. Stupidity is also a costly thing.
