| 2003 Tuzla Island conflict | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofpost-Soviet conflicts | |||||||
 Kerch Strait in 2011, with the long, thin causeway stretching from the Russian coast towards the island | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Vladimir PutinMikhail Kasyanov |  Leonid KuchmaViktor Yanukovych | ||||||
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|---|---|---|
2nd Prime Minister of Ukraine (government)2nd President of Ukraine First term (1994–1999)
Second term (1999–2004)
Post-presidency Controversies and protests
Governments Elections | ||
A dispute overTuzla Island in theKerch Strait arose betweenRussia and Ukraine in 2003, sparked by unannounced Russian construction of acauseway from their side of the strait toward the island, which is Ukrainian territory.[1] Russians offered various reasons for building the causeway, butUkraine saw it as a threat to their territorial integrity. The dispute raised fears of an armed confrontation,[2] but a settlement was negotiated.
Tuzla Island is a sandy island off the coast of the Crimean Peninsula. Formerly aspit connected by land to theKuban region of Russia, it was disconnected from it by a heavy storm in 1925. In 1941, the island was transferred to theCrimean Autonomous Socialist Soviet Republic, which was part of theRussian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic. It became the Crimean Oblast in 1945, and the oblast was transferred to theUkrainian Soviet Socialist Republic in 1954. Tuzla Island came under the control of the briefly independentRepublic of Crimea before joining with Ukraine when the Crimean parliament joined Ukraine in 1995.
Russia recognized Ukrainian sovereignty over Crimea in theRussian–Ukrainian Friendship Treaty of 1997, but the status of Tuzla Island was not settled and remained a sore spot inRussia–Ukraine relations.[2][3] Thegovernor ofKrasnodar Krai,Alexksandr Tkachyov, said in 2003, "... I think that this is land that was bathed in Cossack blood, and therefore it is our sacred land", claiming the island as part of Russia.[4] Tkachyov later met with the deputy speaker of theRussian duma,Vladimir Zhirinovsky, who then claimed that the majority of the Duma backed the Russian claim over Tuzla Island.[5] Controlling the island would give either country much control over the shipping to theSea of Azov, and for that reason was seen as a priority for the Ukrainian government.[3] In 2003, the island was home to a dozen families of Ukrainian fishermen,[3] and two vacation resorts.[1]
On September 9, 2003, Russians began construction of a causeway from theTaman Peninsula inKrasnodar Krai towards Tuzla Island. The work began rapidly, without notice, with up to 180 dump-truck loads of earth an hour being dropped into the sea.[1]
There were several stories regarding what entity in Russia authorised the construction. One had it that a local self-government body of theKuban Cossacks authorised construction to reduce salt water flow to Taman Bay, to thus improve conditions for certain species of fish. According to this story, many Kuban Cossack activists were among the construction workers.[3] Kyiv newspaperZerkalo Nedeli suggested that it was supported by local Crimean and Russian businessmen and Ukrainian Communist politicianLeonid Hrach to convince Ukraine and Russia to build a bridge over Kerch Strait to facilitate trade.[3] Officials in Krasnodar Krai said they were just rebuilding the pre-1925 land connection, to protect their coastal area from flooding.[1] The central government in Moscow likewise said it was to prevent erosion of the coast.[2]
Romanian-American political analystVladimir Socor claimed that the construction was by Russia'sMinistry of Emergency Situations.[6] He said that Russian presidentVladimir Putin personally ordered and oversaw the construction, with the purpose of connecting Russia to Tuzla Island, making it part of the Russian mainland. He said that Russia was attempting to seize control of the strait's main shipping channel from Ukraine.[6][7]
The Ukrainian government responded by deploying border troops of theSimferopol Detachment on the island.[2][5]Prime MinisterViktor Yanukovych said, "Tuzla is an integral part of Ukrainian territory". Deputy Prime ministerMykola Azarov later said that the Ukrainian government would spend "whatever amount necessary" to defend its national interest following the allocation of 5.5 millionhryvnia to increase border security on Tuzla.[5]
On October 21, 2003, the Russian tugboatTruzhenik crossed the border to photograph and film border posts and defences on the island and was detained by theBorder Service of Ukraine. The Ukrainians released the tugboat after armed Russian coastal guard boats arrived.[6]
On October 23, 2003, theVerkhovna Rada issued a resolution "to eliminate a threat to the territorial integrity of Ukraine that appeared as a result of dam construction by the Russian Federation in the strait of Kerch". A provisional special parliamentary commission was created to investigate the case more thoroughly.
On October 30–31, 2003, talks started between Ukraine and Russia in order to deflate the crisis.[8] President Kuchma ended the confrontation through an undeclared compromise, accepting terms disadvantageous to Ukraine, in return for Russian authorities halting construction of the causeway and accepting the continuation of Ukrainian sovereignty over the strait's navigable channel.[7]
The incident damagedLeonid Kuchma's reputation domestically, as he was accused of attempting to control Ukrainian media reporting on the event.[5]
Disputes about right of passage were resolved by a2003 bilateral agreement on cooperation in the use of theSea of Azov and the strait of Kerch,[9][failed verification] which made these water bodies shared internal waters of both countries.
The island came under full Russian control following the2014 Russian annexation of Crimea, and they built theKerch Strait Bridge partly on it.[10]
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