1988 Black Sea bumping incident
Date | February 12, 1988 |
---|---|
Time | 10:02 a.m. (MSK) |
Location | Black Sea |
Coordinates | 44°15′N 33°35′E / 44.25°N 33.59°E |
Target | United States Navy vessels:
|
Perpetrator | Soviet Navy vessels:
|
Outcome | Passing of the US/USSR Joint Statement on Uniform Acceptance of Rules of International Law Governing Innocent Passage |
The Black Sea bumping incident of 12 February 1988 occurred when American cruiser USS Yorktown tried to exercise the right of innocent passage through Soviet territorial waters in the Black Sea during the Cold War. The cruiser was bumped by the Soviet frigate Bezzavetny with the intention of pushing Yorktown into international waters. This incident also involved the destroyer USS Caron, sailing in company with USS Yorktown and claiming the right of innocent passage, which was intentionally shouldered by a Soviet Mirka-class frigate SKR-6. Yorktown reported minor damage to its hull, with no holing or risk of flooding.[1] Caron was undamaged.[1]
At the time, the Soviet Union recognized the right of innocent passage for warships in its territorial waters solely in designated
Background
In 1979, the United States launched an informal program to promote the "rights and freedoms of navigation and overflight guaranteed to all nations under international law".[1] The US government said that it initiated the program because some countries were beginning to assert jurisdictional boundaries beyond traditional claims.[1] The United States wished to stop this and, it said, diplomatic protests had seemed to be ineffective.[1] A new customary international law could emerge if nations avoided operating their ships and aircraft in the disputed areas, and the US saw this as undesirable.[1]
In the 1980s, US warships were passing through the straits from the
Meanwhile, "The Rules of Navigation and Sojourn of Foreign Warships in the Territorial Waters and Internal Waters and Ports of the USSR", enacted by the
After the
Incident
On 12 February 1988, the Ticonderoga-class cruiser USS Yorktown, and the Spruance-class destroyer USS Caron, conducted an innocent passage exercise in the Black Sea. Caron passed 7.5 mi (12.1 km) off the Soviet shore, and Yorktown drew to 10.3 mi (16.6 km) offshore. The commander of the Black Sea Fleet Mikhail Khronopulo received an order from Chernavin to curb the passage of US warships.[4] Initially the destroyer Krasnyy Kavkaz was tasked with confronting them, but she experienced technical problems so Bezzavetnyy, a Krivak-class frigate, was dispatched instead.[5] However, according to Bezzavetny's commander, Captain Vladimir Bogdashin, his ship had two cruise missiles instead of four, was half the size of Yorktown, and was only a third its size by displacement.[5] The Soviet frigate SKR-6, commanded by Captain Anatoliy Petrov, was approximately one quarter the size of USS Caron.[5]
First, Caron was approached by the frigate SKR-6, and three minutes later, Yorktown was approached by the frigate Bezzavetnyy,
Both US warships stayed on even course after the incident. Caron left Soviet territorial waters at 11:50 a.m. local time without further incident.[1]
Both US warships reported the incident to the commander-in-chief of
The
Response
The
Soon after the issue of innocent passage was resolved between the two nations when the US/USSR Joint Statement on Uniform Acceptance of Rules of International Law Governing Innocent Passage was issued acknowledging the rights of each nation to transit territorial waters.[8]
See also
- 1986 Black Sea incident
- 2003 Tuzla Island conflict
- 2018 Kerch Strait incident
- 2021 Black Sea incident
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w William J. Aceves. "Diplomacy at Sea: U.S. Freedom of Navigation Operations in the Black Sea". International Law Studies. 68.
- ^ Kraska & Pedrozo 2013, pp. 255–256
- ^ a b Kraska & Pedrozo 2013, p. 256
- ^ a b c Сергей Птичкин (10 April 2014). Атака "Беззаветного". Rossiyskaya Gazeta (in Russian). Archived from the original on 8 September 2014. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Алексей Овчинников (16 February 2012). Империя наносит последний удар. Komsomolskaya Pravda (in Russian). Archived from the original on 7 September 2014. Retrieved 7 September 2014.
- Philadelphia Media Network. Archivedfrom the original on 7 September 2014. Retrieved 6 September 2014.
- ^ Kraska & Pedrozo 2013, p. 257
- ISBN 978-94-017-5600-6. Archivedfrom the original on 19 September 2023. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
Bibliography
- Kraska, James; Pedrozo, Raul (2013). International Maritime Security Law. Martinus Nijhoff Publishers. ISBN 978-9004233577.