"The [Russian Black Sea] fleet-related issues will not be used against Russia or Ukraine," the Ukrainian Defense Ministry quoted Anatoliy Hrytsenko as saying. "This is a military unit, which must operate smoothly in line with the bilateral treaty and Ukrainian law."
Hrytsenko said Ukraine's military top brass and the Russian Black Sea Fleet commanders had not had any major disputes lately and had been coping with routine problems.
"The ownership of some facilities has not been finalized and we do have to settle some sublease problems. However, these are issues deep-rooted in history and we are capable of resolving them," the minister said.
Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko, in an apparent attempt to hit back Russia's plans to raise gas prices in 2006, has said Ukraine could demand that the terms of leasing the Sevastopol base in his country's autonomy of the Crimea be reviewed.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov responded to the statement by saying that "revising the treaty would be tantamount to death," meaning that it could reignite a dangerous border dispute.
Russia's Black Sea Fleet has been based in Sevastopol since the 18th century, but the country has been leasing the base in the Crimea, which was handed over to Ukraine by Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, since the Soviet Union broke up in 1991.
