(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. called on Russia to release jailed Ukrainian sailors and enable a prisoner exchange, U.S. State Department Special Representative Kurt Volker told reporters in Kiev.
Russia seized three Ukrainian naval vessels and imprisoned their two dozen crew members in November, accusing them of violating its territorial waters. The incident occurred off the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014 after protesters in Kiev ousted the country's Kremlin-backed leader. This week, Ukraine detained and searched a Russian tanker near the Black Sea port of Odessa.
A visit by Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to the U.S. is being prepared, Volker said. Zelenskiy came to power in May. Volker called the recent parliamentary elections free and fair and said Ukraine should step up reforms and overhaul the judiciary system.
Read more: Why the Russia-Ukraine Conflict Is Now Flaring at Sea: QuickTake
To contact the reporter on this story: Volodymyr Verbyany in Kiev at vverbyany1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net, Sara Marley, John Bowker
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