In NATO, “although there are Russophobes, they are realists,” said on Wednesday, February 10, State Duma deputy Ruslan Balbek, commenting on the proposal of the Minister of Infrastructure of Ukraine Vladislav Krikliy to use the airspace of Crimea for the alliance’s operations.
“If Kiev thinks that tomorrow NATO planes will start flying over Simferopol, then this is a delusion or, on the contrary, naivety. In the alliance, in contrast to the team of (President of Ukraine Volodymyr – Ed.) Zelensky, there are even Russophobes, but realists. To launch a plane towards Crimea is to issue a ticket to the pilot for the scaffold or, if he is lucky, in the Simferopol pre-trial detention center, where he will be placed in case of a successful ejection, “RIA Novosti quoted him as saying.
Balbek stressed that if NATO agrees with the Crimean proposal, it will end in a diplomatic scandal and a court, which the alliance “knows very well” about. He also suggested that NATO can offer Kiev to implement its idea on its own.
“They say, you are flying, and we are with you in spirit, if anything, we will again arrange a hysteria about the“ aggression of the Russians, ”the deputy added.
Earlier on Wednesday, Krikliy, during a meeting with NATO Assistant Secretary General for Defense Policy and Planning Patrick Turner, proposed using the airspace “in the Simferopol Flight Information Region (FIR)” for the operations of the North Atlantic Alliance for the transportation of troops, equipment and cargo.
On February 1, it was reported that the Ukrainian naval forces conducted a joint training session with the ships of the US naval forces in the Black Sea. The exercises were aimed at ensuring security in the Black Sea, improving the trainability and compatibility of the crews of the Ukrainian and US naval ships to carry out joint maritime operations as part of multinational tactical groups.
Crimea returned to Russia following a referendum in 2014. 96.77% of the inhabitants of the peninsula and 95.6% of the voters of Sevastopol voted for the accession. The procedure was carried out in strict accordance with international law.
Kiev did not recognize the results of the vote and is making plans to “return” the region. Moscow points out that the referendum was held in compliance with all international norms and the question of ownership of the peninsula is closed forever.