On 28 May 1997, Russia and Ukraine sign the Partition Treaty on the Status and Conditions of the Black Sea Fleet — three bilateral agreements dividing the Soviet fleet and regulating Russian basing in Crimea.

The fleet: about 81.7% Russia, 18.3% Ukraine; Moscow pays compensation. Ukraine leases facilities until 2017 (with renewal option), with annual payments deducted from Russian gas.

The status agreement limits Russian troops, artillery and aircraft and binds Russia to respect Ukrainian sovereignty. Three days later the Russian–Ukrainian Friendship Treaty completes the framework.

The Kharkiv Pact (2010) extended the lease to 2042. After annexing Crimea, Russia unilaterally denounced the treaties in March 2014.

For the 1990s, 28 May 1997 closed the naval dispute that had fuelled Sevastopol–Moscow–Kyiv tensions.

The texts appear on Wikisource and in both states’ diplomatic collections.

The Black Sea Fleet Partition Treaty of 28 May 1997 remains the act that formalised fleet division and Russian basing until 2014.

Image: Sevastopol; Wikimedia Commons. Cropped to 16:9.

Source consulted: Partition Treaty on the Status and Conditions of the Black Sea Fleet. Treaty text: Partition Treaty on the Black Sea Fleet (Wikisource).