MOSCOW. Nov 27 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed the dangerous incident that occurred in the Kerch Strait, which connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov, on November 25 in a phone call, the Russian presidential press service said.
"Vladimir Putin gave an assessment of the Ukrainian side's provocative actions and the grave violation of international law norms by its naval ships, which deliberately ignored the rules for peaceful passage into the territorial sea of the Russian Federation," the press service said.
"Serious concern was expressed in relation to Kyiv's decision to put its Armed Forces on full combat alert and declare martial law. It was stressed that the Ukrainian leadership bears complete responsibility for sparking another conflict situation and all of the risks associated with it. All this has been done obviously bearing in mind the election campaign in Ukraine," it said.
"Vladimir Putin expressed hope that Berlin will exert an influence on the Ukrainian authorities in order to stop them from taking further ill-considered steps," it said.
It was also noted during the telephone conversation of the Russian and German leaders that "representatives of the Russian Border Guard Service will be ready to additional clarify how the abovementioned events unfolded in the Kerch Strait area," the press service said.
The telephone conversation was held at the German side's initiative.