Russia takes center stage in NATO. Allied foreign ministers met to discuss ways to dissuade Moscow from its stance against Ukraine and encourage it to abide by the important nuclear treaty that stands in the Cold War era.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and NATO partners will hold talks with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin. In fact, Kiev is seeking international support for the affair in the Black Sea.
The Russian border guards fired on three ships of the Ukrainian navy in the Black Sea near Crimea that had been occupied by Russia. The ships and crews were captured.
But it is unclear what more NATO could do beyond maritime patrol and airspace control, which it already does in the region.
Ukraine is not a member of the alliance, this is what NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg pointed out, telling allies that we already "provide strong political support and strong tactical support".
NATO allies have helped modernize the Ukrainian military and have strengthened their presence in the Black Sea over the past year, with more ships deployed in the region and more air police. Three NATO allies on the Black Sea - Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey - are also taking national individual measures.
NATO nations, individually and through the European Union, have also already imposed economic sanctions on Russia since it annexed Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula in 2014.
In any case, Russia remains a problem. Despite NATO launching its largest military exercise in Europe since the Cold War, Russia's actions near the Sea of Azov last week show that the increase in Allied presence does not at all discourage its objectives in eastern Ukraine.
NATO is also very concerned about Russia's new SSC8 missile system. The United States has shared intelligence tests with its allies that the cruise missile could give Moscow the chance to launch a nuclear attack in Europe without warning.
Washington says the system runs counter to the 1987 Medium-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which bans all land-based cruise missiles with a range between 500 and 5.500 kilometers (310-3.410 miles). For this reason, President Donald Trump is threatening to withdraw from the bilateral pact.
"It is essential that Russia complies in a transparent and verifiable way, because the 1987 treaty is fundamental for our security," Stoltenberg told reporters.