Employees of the Russian Federal Security Bureau (FSB), who are working at the Black Sea Fleet facilities, are staying at the Ukrainian territory in line with bilateral agreements.

According to an UNIAN correspondent, Russian Foreign Ministry’s official spokesman Andrey Nesterenko claimed this to a press conference in Moscow on Thursday.

“All subdivisions and services of the Black Sea Fleet are staying in Ukraine in line with bilateral agreements. We expect that all issues will be considered legally and at the table of negotiations. We have all mechanisms to do that”, A.Nesterenko noted.

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According to him, RF and Ukraine have been considering practical issues connected with guaranteeing conditions for a full-fledged operation of the Russian BSF at the Ukrainian territory. The work on these issues is carried out within frames of a respective Ukrainian-Russian commission, the seventh session of which took place in Kyiv on June 10, he stressed. “Any issues connected with the activities of the Russian FSB employees within frames of the Black Sea Fleet were not discussed during the session”, A.Nesterenko pointed out.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) Chief Valentyn Nalyvaychenko claimed on June 17 that after December 13, all officers from the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) represented at the Russian Black Sea Fleet must leave Ukraine. He noted that the Russian side had been officially informed about this. According to Nalyvaychenko, there were currently 19 FSB officers at the Russian Black Sea Fleet. They are involved in intelligence activities. He said that all functions foreseen by Ukrainian laws, including on the safety of Russian sailors, had been imposed on SBU military intelligence units in Sevastopol and Symferopol. Earlier, the SBU head had told the Russian newspaper Nezavizimaya Gazeta that Ukraine could itself ensure the safety of the Russian Black Sea Fleet on its territory.