{"id":37887,"date":"2019-01-24T20:54:31","date_gmt":"2019-01-24T20:54:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/01\/24\/navy-sends-second-message-to-moscow-this-month\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:43:36","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:43:36","slug":"navy-sends-second-message-to-moscow-this-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/news\/your-navy\/2019\/01\/24\/navy-sends-second-message-to-moscow-this-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Navy sends second message to Moscow this month"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By passing through the Bosporus Strait on Saturday, the Navy\u2019s guided missile destroyer Donald Cook<\/a> became the second American warship to enter the Black Sea this month amid ongoing tensions with Moscow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two weeks before, the dock landing ship Fort McHenry arrived at the Romanian port of Constanta to begin exercises with Bucharest\u2019s frigate Regele Ferdinand<\/a> \u2014 while being shadowed by a Russian warship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Donald Cook pulled into Batumi, Georgia, on Monday with a mission to \u201cstrengthen interoperability with NATO allies and partners and demonstrate the collective resolve to Black Sea security under Operation Atlantic Resolve,\u201d according to a prepared statement released by the Navy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“I would like to thank our Georgian hosts for the warm welcome and hospitality,\u201d said Cmdr. Matthew J. Powel, commanding officer of Donald Cook said in the release. \u201cWe are honored to play an active role in strengthening U.S.- Georgian relations and we look forward to visiting Batumi.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sailors planted trees Tuesday for a community service project in Georgia\u2019s second largest city and the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer\u2019s leaders met with American and foreign dignitaries at a reception featuring an address by Ross Wilson, the U.S. ambassador to Georgia<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStrengthening alliances during the port visit to Batumi demonstrates the shared commitment between the United States and Georgia to promote safety and stability in the region while seeking opportunities to enhance cooperation between both countries,\u201d said Wilson in his speech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students from the Georgian Maritime Academy also toured the warship and officials from the Georgian Coast Guard held a confab with American officers on the destroyer\u2019s bridge.<\/p>\n\n\n\t