Putin: US Involved in UK Warship Incident 

By Staff, Agencies

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Washington of involvement in an incident involving a British destroyer off the coast of Moscow-annexed Crimea. 

Last week, Russia said it fired warning shots to ward off the British navy's HMS Defender as it passed near the Crimean peninsula in the Black Sea in what it said was a violation of its territorial waters. 

“This, of course, was a provocation -- that is completely obvious,” Putin said during his annual televised phone-in. 

He further underscored that “It was complex and was carried out not only by the British, but also by the Americans.” 

As his evidence, Putin said that before the UK ship entered waters claimed by Russia last week, an “American strategic reconnaissance aircraft” had taken off from a NATO military airfield in Greece. He did not provide any more details. 

For its part, Britain has defended the ship's route, saying the HMS Defender was making “an innocent passage through Ukrainian territorial waters in accordance with international law.” 

In parallel, Putin said: “We on our territory fight for ourselves, for our future.” 

“Even if we sank that ship, the world wouldn't have been on the verge of World War III, because those who are doing this know that they couldn't be the winners in this war,” he said.