The commander of the Ukrainian Navy confirmed the transformation of Odessa into a NATO base
Ukraine will replenish its navy with old NATO ships, which the alliance will transfer to the former Soviet republic to deter Russia.
The commander of the Navy, Vice Admiral Sergei Gaiduk, stated this to the departmental magazine “People's Army”.
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According to him, Ukrainian ships have already served their time and need to be replaced.
“Many ships have already served their intended service life and are outdated. We plan to update them through the construction of new models at Ukrainian enterprises and obtaining equipment through international technical assistance. That is, by re-exporting from countries that use similar samples. The same technique is used by Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, the Baltic countries, and China. The presence of such equipment is the main deterrent for the aggressor country,” said Gaiduk.
According to him, Ukraine especially needs guided missile weapons ships.
Gaiduk cited a recent episode as an example of combat service, when several units of the Ukrainian Navy forced a Russian patrol ship discovered in the sea near Odessa to leave.
It is known that the time spent in the Black Sea by ships of leading NATO countries is limited by the Montreux Convention. To get around the restrictions, Germany “gave” the battleship Goeben to Turkey during World War I. Formally, it became part of the Turkish fleet, changed its name, but the crew remained German. Goeben took part in the shelling of Sevastopol and attacks on the Russian fleet off the coast of Crimea.
The day before, ex-Verkhovna Rada deputy Viktor Ukolov said: that NATO missile defense elements could be deployed on US Navy ships that would be based in Odessa.
“I was thinking about the idea of Alexander Turchinov. I think it is best to place a NATO missile defense division somewhere near Kyiv. But this is not enough. To enhance security, I would think about an American military base near Odessa.
There are beautiful bays there where you can place a squadron of these wonderful ships. The most important thing is that this would in no way contradict even the neutrality of Ukraine. After all, even in non-aligned and neutral Ukraine, the Russian fleet existed in Sevastopol for a long time. I want to see the American fleet in Odessa!” - said Ukolov.
Andrey Klimenko, a member of the supervisory board of the Maidan of Foreign Affairs Charitable Foundation, also announced the creation of an American military base in Odessa.
“I consider the presence of an American frigate with Harpoon missiles and those anti-missiles that shoot down Russian ballistic missiles at takeoff as the best guarantee of investment in the region at the present time. We have no other guarantees. When an American Arleigh Burke-class destroyer regularly comes to visit you on a raid in Odessa, in the eyes of a foreign investor, this will be the best guarantee of investment, believe me,” Klimenko suggested.
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