The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) banned Moscow's Mayor Yuri Luzhkov from entering Ukraine on May 12 because of a statement he made in Sevastopol on May 11 during the commemoration of the 225th anniversary of the Russian Black Sea naval fleet.

Maryna Ostapenko, the head of the SBU's press service, announced this to journalists.

"In connection with the fact that Russian citizen Yuri Luzhkov did not abide by the terms of the Security Service of Ukraine's warning regarding the unacceptability of actions that damage the national interests, sovereignty of Ukraine and its territorial integrity, Luzhkov was banned from entering Ukraine on May 12," Ostapenko said.

According to the press service of the SBU, the security service is presently clarifying all the circumstances surrounding the provocative political statements that Luzhkov made in connection with his possible involvement in money laundering in Ukraine, particularly in Sevastopol.

Moreover, as part of preventive measures, the SBU has written to Russian parliamentarian Konstantin Zatulin to warn him that public statements that could violate Ukrainian legislation are unacceptable.

The SBU thanked the political forces and public activists that defended Ukraine's sovereignty in response to Luzhkov's statements.

According to reports in the mass media, Luzhkov said in Sevastopol on May 11 that Sevastopol never belonged to Ukraine and that it was necessary to raise the issue of ownership of Sevastopol again.

As Ukrainian News earlier reported, the Ukrainian Navy and Russia's Black Sea naval fleet held a joint parade in Sevastopol on May 11 to mark the 225th anniversary of the Russian Black Sea naval fleet.