Freeland on Kerch Strait crisis: Immediate de-escalation is necessary

Ottawa calls on the Russian Federation to immediately release the Ukrainian Navy sailors, who were captured in the Kerch Strait.

 “Russia’s aggressive actions and the imprisonment of Ukrainian sailors are completely unacceptable. These sailors must be released. An immediate de-escalation is necessary,” Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland posted on Twitter.

Canada is "unwavering in its support for Ukraine’s sovereignty," the minister added.

As reported, on November 25, Russian border ships committed the acts of aggression against three Ukrainian ships heading from the port of Odesa to the port of Mariupol. The Russian special forces fired and seized three Ukrainian ships in the Kerch Strait. There were 24 sailors aboard.

On November 26, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine passed the law “On Approving the Decree of the President of Ukraine ‘On the Imposition of Martial Law in Ukraine’ for 30 days in 10 regions of Ukraine due to Russia's aggression in the Sea of Azov.

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