Ukrainian President Petro Boroshenko accused Russia on Tuesday of increasing its military presence on the Ukrainian border, warning of the danger of a "full-scale war."
"The number of Russian tanks in the bases along the border has increased threefold," Poroshenko said in a television interview. "The number of units deployed along our border has increased dramatically," AFP said.
Ukraine and Russia were tense on Monday after Kiev accused Moscow of illegally holding three of its ships in the Black Sea after being shot.
Kiev said Moscow had blocked Ukrainian navy ships from entering the Azov Sea through the Kerch Strait by placing a large cargo ship under a bridge controlled by Russia.
The Kerch Strait is the only maritime route between the Black Sea and the Azov Sea, and is a strategic hub of utmost importance to Russia and Ukraine.
For its part, Russia said that the Navy acted after entering the Ukrainian ships illegally entered Russian territorial waters, ignored the warnings and conducted dangerous maneuvers.
European sanctions
The European Union announced on Tuesday that it would consider next month the issue of further sanctions against Russia against the backdrop of the latest episode of the escalation with Ukraine.
"We will have a summit in December," Austrian Foreign Minister Karen Kniessel, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said after talks with her German counterpart Haikou Mas.
"Everything depends on the behavior of both parties, but you will need to review it," she said.
Western movements
Later, Western countries entered the line of rising tension, France and Germany stressed that they would work to defuse the crisis between Ukraine and Russia.
The President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, condemned the "use of force by Russia" in the detention of Ukrainian ships in the Azov Sea and asked them to "refrain from any new provocation."
The United States condemned Russia's detention of Ukrainian ships and said such "illegal" moves prevented the development of normal relations between Washington and Moscow.
