In other news:
– Russian fleet at heart of Ukraine crisis is vital for Putin (Cranberra Times, March 8, 2014)
– US Guided-Missile Destroyer Truxtun Has Entered The Black Sea (ZeroHedge, March 7, 2014):
As we reported yesterday, after getting permission to cross the Bosphorus, the guided-missile destroyer USS Truxtun departed the Greek port of Souda Bay on its way to the Black Sea. As of a few hours ago, it is already there. Sky News reports that the USS Truxtun passed the Dardanelles strait earlier today on its way to the Black Sea amid heightened tension over the crisis in Ukraine and reports that Russia has now 30,000 troops in Crimea.
The naval escalation is not the only arms build up in proximity to the Ukraine: the Pentagon said six US F-15 fighter jets have arrived in Lithuania to bolster air patrols over the Baltics. The fighter jets and 60 US military personnel landed at Siauliai Air Base in Lithuania, adding to the four F-15s and 150 troops already there to do the air patrol mission.
Read moreGuided-Missile USS Destroyer Truxtun Has Entered The Black Sea