On 17 February 2020, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian charge d’affaires ad interim and protested against the detention by Russia of four Ukrainian fishermen in the Sea of Azov.
On February 17, 2020, a temporary representative of the Russian Federation in Ukraine was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and protested over the detention of four Ukrainian fishermen in the Azov Sea by the Russian side.
“We demand that the Russian side strictly abide by its international legal obligations and the international treaties to which it is a party and promptly provide comprehensive information on the circumstances of the detention of the Ukrainian fishing boat and its four crew members,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
It demanded that Russia immediately release the Ukrainian fishermen and their boat and return all the fishing equipment.
The Foreign Ministry has confirmed once again its “principled position” that Russia-annexed Crimea and Sevastopol are an integral part of the sovereign territory of Ukraine.