File Photo: Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko (front), Russia's President Vladimir Putin (R) and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attend a meeting with high-ranked officials representing Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Ukraine and the European Union in Minsk, Aug. 26, 2014. (Xinhua/REUTERS)
WASHINGTON, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Monday that Ukrainian and Russian presidents should engage directly to resolve their countries' recent confrontation amid the ongoing Ukraine-Russia dispute.
In his first public statement concerning the dispute, Pompeo said that the United States expresses its deep concern over the incident in the Black Sea that occurred on Sunday as Ukrainian vessels attempted to transit through the Kerch Strait.
Noting that Russia's actions represent "a dangerous escalation," Pompeo said "we call on Russia to return to Ukraine its vessels and detained crew members, and ... both parties to exercise restraint and abide by their international obligations and commitments."
"We urge Presidents (Petro) Poroshenko and (Vladimir) Putin to engage directly to resolve this situation," he added.
Earlier in the day, U.S. President Donald Trump expressed hope that the current confrontation between Ukraine and Russia will get "straightened out."
"We're not happy about it at all. Not at all. We've let our position be known," he said. "We do not like what's happening either way ... and hopefully, it will get straightened out."
Trump and his Russian counterpart Putin were reportedly scheduled to meet later on the sidelines of the Group of 20 (G20) summit in Argentina.
The Ukrainian Navy said on Sunday that Russian forces opened fire and seized three Ukrainian ships near the Kerch Strait, which separates the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov.
Six Ukrainian military sailors were wounded in the attack and two of them were in serious condition, the Ukrainian Navy said.
For its part, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said that three Ukrainian ships, namely Berdyansk, Nikopol and Yany Kapu, breached the Russian border and conducted dangerous maneuvers in spite of orders of the accompanying vessels from the FSB and Russia's Black Sea Fleet.
An emergency meeting of the UN Security Council was called on Monday morning over the escalating situation.
Wu Haitao, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations who chaired the meeting, told the UN Security Council that China has noted the altercation between Russian and Ukrainian naval ships and is "concerned with the tension arising thereof."
"China hopes and calls for the relevant parties to exercise restraint to avoid any further escalation of tension and properly resolve the relevant issues through dialogues and consultations," said Wu.
