The United States will send two warships to the Black Sea next week, Turkey said on Friday as Russia, which has boosted its military forces near Ukraine, accused NATO powers that do not have a coastline in the region of increasing naval activity.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter
The Pentagon declined to discuss Turkey's comments but said the military routinely sends ships to the region.
"That's not anything new," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said in Washington, referring to US military ships in the Black Sea.
Washington says Russia has amassed more troops on Ukraine's eastern border than at any time since 2014 when it annexed Crimea from Ukraine and backed pro-Russian separatists in the eastern Donbass region of Ukraine.
Violence has flared between Ukrainian troops and the separatists. Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a telephone conversation with Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan, accused Ukraine on Friday of "dangerous provocative actions" in the Donbass region.
