MOSCOW, June 4 – Russia’s State Duma, the lower house of Parliament, on Wednesday approved a resolution that calls for breaking a cornerstone friendship agreement with Ukraine to punish Kiev for its push to join NATO.

Separately, a top Russian navy commander said that Russia could easily send more battleships and marines to be stationed in Sevastopol, a Ukrainian city that harbors the Russian Black Sea Fleet.

The developments triggered a strong reaction from Ukraine. President Viktor Yushchenko on Wednesday called the resolution “a big political mistake,” while the Foreign Ministry indicated that Ukraine would not let Russia build up its naval presence in Sevastopol.

The development comes weeks after Ukraine officially informed Russia that Kiev would not extend beyond 2017 the agreement that currently allows the stationing of Russia’s naval forces in Crimea.

But the sharp exchange intensified rapidly after Yushchenko ordered the government to prepare legislation that officially bans stationing of the Black Sea Fleet in Sevastopol beyond 2017.

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev last week called Yushchenko to convey his concerns over Ukraine’s plans to force the BSF away from Ukraine.

Medvedev’s predecessor, Vladimir Putin, who now holds the post of Russian prime minister, earlier this year threatened to target nuclear missiles at Ukraine if the country invites NATO bases on its territory.

Russia’s reaction shows that Moscow views the withdrawal of the BSF from Sevastopol as an extremely sensitive security issue that would reduce its geopolitical influence on the region.

But coupled with Kiev’s pledged commitment to join NATO within the next few years, the development forces Moscow to step up political pressure in an effort to prevent what it sees as the worst-case scenario.

“It would be a big political mistake to revise the current character of [Russia-Ukraine] bilateral relations,” Yushchenko said on a visit to Slovenia, a NATO member. “But, obviously, not everything depends on the Ukrainian party.”

Yushchenko is due to meet Medvedev on Friday at the Russian economic forum in St. Petersburg.

Yushchenko is expected to assure Medvedev that Ukraine will not be inviting NATO bases on its territory after accession to the alliance, and to stress by joining NATO that Kiev exercises its right to choose security and defense options.

“I believe this dialog will of course remove concerns that still take place in the position of the Russian Federation,” Volodymyr Ohryzko, Ukraine’s foreign minister, said.

Meanwhile, the ministry said Ukraine will not allow any more Russian battleships to its port in Sevastopol, and said the increase of the troops would simply contradict the logic of withdrawal beyond 2017.

The BSF, the smallest naval fleet among four fleets it operates, currently numbers 35 battleships and 11,000 marines headquartered in Sevastopol.

But Volodymyr Vysotskiy, Russia’s Navy commander in chief, said Russia could increase the number of ships to 100, while the number of marines can be increased to 25,000. He did not give the reason for the buildup, but said it would not contradict the agreement.

But Ukraine, which is concerned the increasing the number of battleships threatens national security and may eventually lead to delay of the withdrawal from Sevastopol, said it would not let this happen.

“The list of battleships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet has been clearly defined in the agreement,” the ministry said in a statement.

“The question of substituting any of the battleships can be considered through talks, but under condition of sticking to the principle of ‘class-for-class and ‘type-for-type.’ That means [only] substituting a ship with another one of the same class and type.” (tl/ez)