The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday the country will not lose the island of Tuzla if the Russian-Ukrainian sea border is demarcated.
The Ukrainian-Russian border in the Kerch Strait, which links the Sea of Azov to the Black Sea remains undemarcated since the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Ukrainian opposition leader and former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko said on Friday Ukraine may loose the island, which lies in the middle of the Kerch Strait, as a result of the demarcation of the border.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Yanukovych will discuss the issue of border demarcation between Russia and Ukraine during Medvedev's visit to Kiev on May 17-18.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said it was "surprised" by Tymoshenko's claims.
"The question of who the island belongs to has not been and will never be raised in talks [with Russia]. The island is an intrinsic part of Ukrainian territory and Russia fully recognizes this fact," the statement, published in Ukrainian news agency UNIAN said.
KIEV, May 15 (RIA Novosti)