- Russia’s provocations in the Kerch Strait aren’t just a challenge to Ukraine.
Like Beijing in the South China Sea, Moscow is seeking to undermine international maritime law.
- James R. Holmes
- FP
Sunday’s encounter between Russian and Ukrainian vessels in the Kerch Strait, the entryway to the Sea of Azov east of the Crimean peninsula, revived an age-old question in international politics: Can a coastal nation own the sea?
International law says no; authoritarian states such as China and Russia say yes.
Which view prevails may depend on whether seafaring societies band together and push back effectively against Moscow and…