Quote Originally Posted by Ben Sunday View Post
An especially ominous development coupled with the deployment of the Truxton and countered by the reports of mass Red Army troops, perhaps 200K plus and the Soviet cruiser Moskva on the move.

Strictly my opinion: Putin may be trying to box in US naval assets in the Black Sea to minimize outside opposition to his ground forces in Ukraine.

Taking it one step further, a major sea battle could be in the cards.
On a historical note, the last Crimean War started with a naval battle between the Turks and Russians in the Black Sea.