UK defence minister visits Ukraine, says Black Sea is not Russia's

FILE PHOTO - Britain's Secretary of State for Defence, Gavin Williamson arrives in Downing Street, London, Britain, December 4, 2018. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls

ODESSA, Ukraine (Reuters) - British defence minister Gavin Williamson visited Ukraine on Friday where he told his Ukrainian counterpart that the Black Sea did not belong to Russia and that Britain had sent a Royal Navy ship there to show Kiev did not stand alone.

Williamson was speaking as tensions in the area remain high after Russia seized three Ukrainian naval vessels and their crews in the Black Sea last month, accusing them of illegally entering its territorial waters, a charge Ukraine denied.

(Reporting by Iryna Nazarchuk; Editing by Andrew Osborn)