The US Senate condemned Russia's "provocative actions" in the Kerch Strait

The US Senate on Thursday evening adopted a resolution condemning Russia's "provocative actions" against Ukraine in connection with the seizure of three Ukrainian ships by the Russian military in the Kerch Strait.

The senators unanimously supported the non-binding resolution, which was promoted by senators Ron Johnson (Republican) and Chris Murphy (Democrat).

According to Johnson, Russian President Vladimir Putin "is experiencing the West."

Johnson expressed his joy at the fact that the Senate unanimously "confirmed that we support the Ukrainian people, the Ukrainian government and the territorial integrity of Ukraine."

“Today, the Senate began to act and sent Putin a clear signal that we will not tolerate the aggression of his government towards Ukraine in the Sea of ​​Azov. We strongly condemn any military actions by Russia that unilaterally change international rules, ”added Murphy.

The resolution "strongly condemns" the actions of Russia and calls on it to release the detained Ukrainian sailors.

The Senate “calls on members of the world community to stand united against the actions of the government of the Russian Federation in the Kerch Strait, because they violate the fundamental principles of international law applicable to all countries,” the resolution says.

The document emphasizes that "the behavior of the government of the Russian Federation has a destabilizing effect on the entire region and contributes to further escalation."

Ukraine accuses Russia of seizing three ships and 24 sailors off the coast of the Crimea peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014, causing international outrage. Moscow insists that the ships illegally entered its territorial waters.

Earlier, US President Donald Trump отмениР» meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the margins of the G20 summit in Argentina.

“Based on the fact that ships and sailors were not returned by Russia to Ukraine, I decided that it would be best for all interested parties to cancel my previously scheduled meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Argentina. I hope to hold a meaningful summit next time, as soon as the situation is resolved! ”, The President wrote on Twitter.

According to representatives of the American and Russian authorities, during the meeting it was planned to discuss issues related to arms control, as well as the situation in the Middle East and the North Korean issue. The Kremlin has made it clear that for him the key issue is Trump’s recent decision to withdraw from the Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles. For the White House, the main goal was to obtain from Russia public guarantees of the implementation of sanctions against the DPRK on the eve of Trump’s planned meeting next month with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

However, the incident in the Kerch Strait changed the dynamics, although the Kremlin said earlier that they were counting on holding a meeting.

Photo by: kremlin.ru

“We don’t have to agree on all issues, it’s impossible, but we’ll have to talk. This is in the interests of not only our two countries, it is in the interests of the whole world, ”said Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov.

During a press briefing at the State Department, which was held in Washington on the day of 29 in November, Deputy Head of the Department of State Robert Palladino said that he “did not know anything” about the negotiations with the Russian Foreign Ministry.

He negatively answered the question about the possible meeting of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo with Sergey Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister during the G20 summit.

Commenting on Trump’s reaction to the “Kerch incident,” Palladino said:

“You know what the president wrote in his tweets - we made it clear on this point that we are counting on the return of Ukrainian sailors and ships (to their homeland). The aggression we witnessed this week is unacceptable, and (the president) sent (Russia) a weighty message, ”the State Department spokesman said.

He clarified that Trump had in mind the "isolation" of Russia.

Trump's national security adviser John Bolton said earlier this week that Trump had planned to discuss security, arms control and regional crises with Putin. “I think this will be a continuation of their conversation in Helsinki,” he said, referring to the first summit of the two leaders, which was held in July in the capital of Finland.

Recall, November 26 The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine voted to impose martial law for a term of 30 days in the 10 regions of the country: Vinnitsa, Lugansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhya, Nikolaev, Odessa, Sumy, Kharkiv, Chernihiv, Kherson, as well as on the territory of the Azov-Kerch inner waters water areas.

Decision on martial law received in connection with the act of aggression of Russia against Ukraine in the Kerch Strait. As a result of the illegal actions of the Russian security forces 25 November were captured three ships of the Ukrainian Navy and 24 captured Ukrainian soldiers. The Russians claim that the ships of the Ukrainian Navy invaded the "territorial waters of the Russian Federation." Ukrainians taken into custody until January 25 2019.

The US embassy responded to the imposition of martial law by issuing recommendations for US citizens in Ukraine, as well as calling on the EU to tighten sanctions against the Kremlin.