U.S. warship deployed through Turkish waters: reports

A U.S. Navy warship is heading to the Black Sea as tensions in Ukraine continue to divide world powers, according to multiple published reports.

Turkey has given the USS Truxtun permission to pass through the Bosphorus into the Black Sea.

U.S. officials say it is a “routine” deployment that was scheduled before the crisis erupted in Ukraine.

However, the show of military hardware is coinciding with NATO’s show of military support over Baltic countries with its use of air patrols and F-15 fighter jets.

Meantime, President Barack Obama’s warnings to Russia are being brushed aside by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who appears to only be speeding up efforts to formally stake his claim to Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula.

The two presidents spoke for an hour over the phone on Thursday night. CNN reports Putin remained defiant in his conversation with Obama, insisting that Russia’s actions are complaint with international law, and that Russia was responding to requests of help from Russian-speaking people in the southern and eastern parts of Ukraine.

Moscow has so far refused to withdraw its troops from the strategic region, which also houses Russia’s Black Sea fleet — a tense standoff that has triggered international sanctions against Russia and visa restrictions on its officials.

CNN also reports a delegation from Crimea’s parliament are meeting with leading members of Russia’s parliament in Moscow on Friday. They received a warm welcome, as Russian politicians praised them for their courage and determination.

Lawmakers in Crimea voted unanimously to split from Ukraine and join Russia, and will hold a referendum March 16 to allow voters on the disputed peninsula to weigh in on the decision.

On Thursday, Canada’s Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Crimea is under “illegal military occupation” and that Canada will not recognize its forthcoming referendum on whether to join Russia.

Harper described Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as an act of aggression and a clear violation both of Ukraine’s sovereignty and international law.

Obama declared the March 16 vote a violation of international law. The White House has tried to match Russia’s assertive posture by moving quickly to impose financial sanctions and travel bans on Russians and other opponents of Ukraine’s new central government.

With files from The Canadian Press and The Associated Press

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