Russian fighter jets are practicing attacking NATO ships in the Black Sea in another dramatic sign that tensions over Ukraine continue to build despite a fragile ceasefire agreed last month. “Russia’s newest Su-30 fighter jets and Su-24 attack bombers are using two NATO ships in the Black Sea to practice penetrating anti-air systems,” reports Sputnik, citing a source at the Sevastopol naval... 

A truly grim Ministry of Defense (MoD) report circulating in the Kremlin today states that President Putin has ordered over 2,000 top military officers to immediately begun duties at the National Defense Control Center (NDCC) which is, in fact, Russia’s “wartime government” headquarters in Moscow as “global war nears”. According to this report, Putin’s order came immediately after his... 

Three Russian military planes have conducted low-level flyovers buzzing a Canadian navy frigate taking part in a NATO exercise in the Black Sea off the southern coast of Ukraine. A Canadian military source, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said three Russian aircraft flew low over HMCS Toronto on Sunday. The source added that two of the Russian planes were SU-24 fighter jets and the third was... 

The guided-missile destroyer USS Ross. Ukrainian and American naval forces are taking part in joint maritime drills dubbed Sea Breeze 2014, which began on Monday in the northwestern part of the Black Sea and will last till September 10. “Today in the north-west part of the Black Sea, we are beginning the joint Navy exercises of Ukraine and the US, known as ‘Sea Breeze 2014’. The exercises will... 

The guided-missile destroyer USS Ross A US Navy destroyer and a French frigate are expected to enter the waters of the Black Sea next week, a diplomatic and military source said. “Two NATO warships at once will arrive in the Black Sea on September 3. They are US Navy’s destroyer USS Ross and frigate, Commandant Birot, of the naval forces of France,” the unnamed source told RIA-Novosti news agency. There’s... 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised to do everything to stop the ongoing violence in eastern parts of neighboring Ukraine. Speaking in Crimea on Thursday, the Russian president described the violence in eastern Ukraine as fratricide. “The country has sunk into bloody chaos in a fratricidal conflict,” Putin said, adding, “We will do our best to end this conflict as soon... 

Cars skid in the water in the flooded area of the Black sea town of Varna, Bulgaria, Thursday, June 19, 2014. At least ten people have died and several are missing after heavy rain and flooding hit Bulgaria’s northeastern city of Varna. Ivan Portnih, the mayor of Varna, said heavy rainfall in the Black Sea resort city triggered a flood wave late on Thursday in one of its low-lying suburbs, killing... 

Amid the ongoing standoff with Russia over Ukraine, the United States is sending another warship to the Black Sea. According to Pentagon officials, a guided missile cruiser, the USS Vella Gulf, is sailing to the region to reassure US allies over what they describe as Russia’s intervention in Ukraine. Washington launched a military buildup in the Balkans in the wake of the Ukraine crisis. It has... 

A warship firing during a naval drill at Black Sea Some 1,600 Romanian sailors have started five days of war games in the Black Sea amid heightened tensions in neighboring Ukraine. Romania’s Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday that the war games code-named “Vector 2014”, will run through Friday in the Black Sea. It said the drills are part of long-planned and regular naval exercises. The... 

US frigate USS Taylor (FFG 50) has entered the Black Sea, according to the US Navy, as the Pentagon announces plans to dispatch some 600 troops to Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia for military exercises. The US claims the ship’s entry is “to promote peace and stability in the region.” “The US Navy routinely operates ships in the Black Sea consistent with the Montreux Convention and International... 

The guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun operates in the Black Sea March 19, 2014. Another US warship is heading towards the Black Sea amid rising tensions between the United States and Russia over the crisis in Ukraine. The US Navy officials have refused to identify which warship is taking part in the mission, reported Stars and Stripes, a website close to the US Armed Forces. They said that the warship... 

Romania says the United States wants to boost its military presence in the eastern European country amid tensions in neighboring Ukraine. Romanian President Traian Basescu said on Tuesday that Washington has asked to increase the number of its troops and aircraft at a Black Sea airbase in eastern Romania. “The US Embassy in Bucharest has asked for support from Romanian authorities to expand... 

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law the documents officially making Crimea part of Russian territory. Putin signed the bills at the Kremlin on Friday, completing the process of making Ukraine’s strategic Black Sea region part of the Russian Federation. The Russian president also signed legislation creating two new Russian administrative districts: Crimea and the port city of Sevastopol. Before... 

The United States says it does not recognize the outcome of the referendum held in the Ukrainian region of Crimea and is preparing to impose retaliatory penalties against Russia if it annexes the strategic peninsula on the Black Sea. “The United States has steadfastly supported the independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Ukraine since it declared its independence in 1991, and we... 

Turkey has given a US Navy Warship the green light to pass through the Bosphorus within the next two days as tensions in Ukraine’s Crimea region continue to divide world powers. Turkish sources, speaking with the Hurriyet Daily News on Wednesday, declined to elaborate on the name of the US warship. The same officials told the daily on condition of anonymity that the ship in question was not the...