Ukraine plans to close part of the Azov Sea during the military exercises
Part of the Azov Sea near the Ukrainian city of Berdyansk and Yalta village in the Donetsk region will be closed from October 9 to 12 because of the exercises of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, journalist Andrei Klimenko announced on Facebook. He reported the exact coordinates of the closed area, as well as the time interval of the live fire exercises.
“Artillery fire [will be conducted] from 15:00 UTC October 9 to 12:00 UTC on October 10, 2018 and from 15:00 UTC October 11 to 12:00 UTC October 12, 2018,” wrote the journalist.
Recent reports revealed that Kyiv wants to conduct large-scale military exercises in the Sea of Azov. The secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC), Oleksandr Turchynov explained that Russian aggression was the reason for strengthening the coast guard and air force in this area.
In late September, during his speech to the UN General Assembly, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko accused Russia of the intention to occupy the Sea of Azov after the Crimea.