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MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russia will firmly suppress any attempts to lay claims to the Sea of Azov after it became its internal sea, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Saturday.
«Neither Ukraine nor the UK has any room for cooperation in the Azov Sea. After the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions joined Russia in September 2022, the Azov Sea became Russia’s internal sea. Any claims to its waters are gross interference in the internal affairs of our country and will be severely suppressed,» Zakharova said.
Moscow considers this agreement to be nothing more than a PR stunt, she added.
«Behind this, we see London’s long-standing desire to gain a foothold in these waters, especially in the Azov-Black Sea basin. Kiev, despite all its geopolitical claims, has been assigned only a supporting role in this,» Zakharova said.
On Thursday, Ukraine and the United Kingdom signed a «One Hundred Year Partnership Agreement,» pledging to enhance maritime cooperation in the Baltic, Black and Azov seas.
