Russia is not preparing to attack civilian ships in the Black Sea, said the country’s ambassador to the United States, Anatoly Antonov, quoted by Sky News.

Anatoly Antonov’s statement came just a day after Moscow made it clear it would take action against ships bound for Ukraine, saying it would consider them to be carrying military cargo.

Earlier today, the US said it was “deeply concerned” by Russia’s attacks in the Black Sea.

“This is completely contrary to our approaches,” Antonov was quoted as saying by his embassy on Facebook.

“Unlike the American authorities, which continue to turn a blind eye to the terrorist outings of their wards in Kyiv, we have always been at the forefront of the fight against such crimes,” he said.

After Russia threatened to treat all ships bound for Ukrainian Black Sea ports as potential military targets, Kyiv issued a similar warning to Moscow.

Thus, Ukraine declares that, starting at midnight, it will consider any vessels in the Black Sea bound for Russian ports or Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories as potential carriers of military cargo.

Kyiv’s warning echoes the wording of a statement released a day earlier by Russia’s Defense Ministry, which came after Russia pulled out of the Black Sea grain deal and then three nights launched missile strikes on the Ukrainian ports of Odesa and Mykolaiv, which were part of the deal.

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