Moscow fought to the last to prevent the exercise from taking place calling upon the United States not to participate. A few days before the exercise began, the Russian military staged a provocation against the British destroyer Defender and the Dutch frigate Evertsen.

The “Sea Breeze” is an annual multinational maritime exercise which has been held since 1997 in accordance with the “Memorandum of mutual understanding and cooperation in issues of military relations.” The aim of the exercise is to enhance interoperability and capability of the Naval Forces of Ukraine, the United States and NATO member-states during joint operations to maintain peace and stability in the Black Sea Region.

In accordance with the reached agreements, Ukraine provides the military and civil facilities which are situated on the Black Sea coast, while the United States provides financing, military hardware and equipment. This year, the exercise is held in the north-western part of the Black Sea.

The exercise is being held from June 28 to July 10 and will focus on multiple warfare areas including amphibious warfare, land maneuver warfare, diving operations, maritime interdiction operations, air defense, special operations integration, anti-submarine warfare, and search and rescue operations.

Ruslan Khomchak, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, said, “This exercise will be the largest since 1997. It is geared to train the personnel of the Ukrainian Navy to carry out military tasks in compliance with NATO’s standard procedures, to build personal experience and teamwork capabilities during multinational operations aimed at maintaining peace and security.”

Ukraine and the U.S. are co-hosting the exercise in the Black Sea with participation and support coming from 32 countries including the United States, Georgia, Italy, France, Great Britain, Canada, Denmark, South Korea, Israel, Norway, Australia, Spain and Japan.

The “Sea Breeze-2021” will employ 40 airplanes and helicopters, almost 30 thousand servicemen, 50 types of weapons and military equipment, 30 warships and torpedo boats including the guided-missile destroyer USS Ross of the U.S. Navy, the frigate Evertsen of the Royal Netherlands Navy and the French warship Alize.

“This exercise is an international exercise taking place in international waters. An important part of what we’re doing here is we are demonstrating to the world that the Black Sea is an international sea; it is open and available for shipping for all nations,” said Capt. Kyle Gantt, deputy commander, task force 65, the U.S. Navy.

“USS Ross’ participation in this year’s Sea Breeze maritime exercise is a tangible demonstration of U.S. support for Ukraine and is necessary now more than ever,” said Kristina Kvien, the chargé d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Ukraine. “It is part of the enduring commitment that the United States and our NATO Allies and partner nations have made since 1997 to enhance maritime security in the Black Sea.”

More than once, Russia came out with protests against holding the multinational maritime exercise “Sea Breeze”, requesting Washington not to participation because of the allegedly aggressive character of the exercise “which encourages militaristic sentiments in Kyiv.” The Russian military have claimed that NATO under the cover of the exercise will provide the Ukrainian authorities with new weapons and armaments which later will be transferred to Ukrainian soldiers fighting in Donbas.

In this regard, more Russian provocations against the participants in the exercise cannot be excluded, according to analysts. Thus, military expert Serhiy Hrabski believes, “Being unable to respond adequately, the Kremlin can launch actions with the aim to show its citizens that the Russian Federation continues to be a leading state in the region and is ready to rebuke any encroachments of ‘imperialistic and NATO’s aggressors’.”

In the opinion of Bohdan Ustymenko, the director of the Institute for Maritime Law and Security, the importance of this year’s exercise is tremendous both for Ukraine and for other countries of the Black Sea region. Ustymenko wrote, “The Russian Federation continues to spread its ‘creeping aggression’ in the sea. The Russians have occupied the biggest portion of the Ukrainian territorial sea along with the biggest part of the Georgian sea. That’s why the holding of this exercise has a colossal importance, particularly for ensuring the freedom of navigation there. Besides, the exercise is a significant political step to demonstrate to the Russians that they are not the masters of the Black Sea”.

Photo: On June 27, the American guided-missile destroyer USS Ross entered Odessa sea port to take part in the multinational maritime exercise “Sea Breeze-2021.”

The newspaper Voice of Ukraine