Russian and US warships engaged in Black Sea stand-off

RUSSIAN AND US warships were engaged in a Black Sea stand-off last night, amid western warnings that the conflict in Georgia could destabilise other parts of Moscow's old empire.

A US coast guard cutter carrying aid docked at the Georgian port of Batumi after bypassing the Russian-controlled port of Poti. Two other US navy vessels were offshore in the Black Sea. Meanwhile, 250km (155 miles) north, Russian warships landed in the separatist region of Abkhazia.

The Black Sea has become a potential flashpoint since Russian forces crushed a Georgian attempt to reclaim the breakaway province of South Ossetia and took control of swathes of Tbilisi's territory, including the port of Poti.

Russia recognised the independence of both South Ossetia and Abkhazia on Tuesday; accused Nato of massing naval forces in the Black Sea; and said a US destroyer that landed at Batumi earlier this week was supplying new weapons to Georgia under the cover of aid.

"Normally battleships do not deliver aid and this is battleship diplomacy, this does not make the situation more stable," said Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.

Gen Anatoly Nogovitsyn, who claimed 10 Nato warships are in the Black Sea with eight more on the way, said international conventions prevented the alliance from bringing more vessels into the region. "In light of the build-up of Nato naval forces in the Black Sea, the [Russian] fleet has also taken on the task of monitoring their activities," he said.

In Abkhazia, Russian deputy admiral Sergei Menyailo said warships had arrived to "support peace and stability". He said: "Our tasks include the control of Abkhazia's territorial waters and the prevention of arms shipments."

In Ukraine, president Viktor Yushchenko told Moscow that he might raise the rent on the port of Sevastopol, which is leased to Russia's Black Sea fleet.

"We don't intend to allow troops which could be used in military action with a third or fourth country to use our territory," he said. "What has happened is a threat to everyone, not just for one country . . . When we allow someone to ignore the fundamental right of territorial integrity, we put into doubt the existence of any country."

French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner warned that Moscow could foment unrest in the largely ethnic-Russian Crimea region of Ukraine, where Sevastopol is located, or in Moldova's Kremlin-backed breakaway province of Transdniestria. "It's very dangerous," he said of Russia's move to recognise the sovereignty of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

The G7 also condemned Russia's decision to recognise Georgia's breakaway regions. "We, the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States and the United Kingdom, condemn the action of our fellow G8 member," the group said in a joint statement released by the US state department.