Turkey closes Black Sea Straits for warships

The authorities of Turkey have announced the introduction of a ban on the passage of military vessels through the Bosporus and Dardanelles Straits. Turkey explains the above decision by an attempt to prevent the escalation of the military conflict in Ukraine.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that the special military operation of the Russian troops in Ukraine began on the morning of February 24. On February 26, Dagestani leader Sergei Melikov reported that Officer Nurmagomed Gadjimagomedov, a native of the Kuli District, was killed during the special military operation in Ukraine. Today, Ramzan Kadyrov has announced that two natives of Chechnya were killed and four others were injured in Ukraine.

“Turkey has warned all coastal and non-coastal countries to prevent the passage of warships through the straits," announced Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu as quoted by the “Interfax” on the night of March 1.

At the same time, Turkey will continue to comply with the provisions of the Montreux Convention, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan states. (The Montreux Convention restored the Turkey’s sovereignty over the Bosporus and Dardanelles Straits from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. At the same time, Turkey undertook to comply with the principles of international maritime law, – note of the “Caucasian Knot”).

“Turkey intends to use the powers provided by the Montreux Convention with respect to the Black Sea Straits in such a way as to prevent the escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian crisis,” the “Interfax” quotes President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as saying. “Turkey will successfully overcome the current situation between Russia and Ukraine and does not want to turn its back on either Moscow or Kiev,” added the President of Turkey.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 1, 2022 at 08:28 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.