2003 Tuzla Island conflict

2003 Tuzla Island conflict
	Part of the Post-Soviet conflicts
	; Kerch Strait in 2011, with the long, thin causeway stretching from the Russian coast towards the island
Date	September–October 2003
Location	Tuzla Island, Kerch Strait
Result	See the § Aftermath
Belligerents
Russia Federal Security Service FSB Border Service; ; ;	Ukraine Ministry of Internal Affairs State Border Guard Service; ; ;
Commanders and leaders
Vladimir Putin ; Mikhail Kasyanov	Leonid Kuchma ; Viktor Yanukovych

A dispute over Tuzla Island in the Kerch Strait arose between Russia and Ukraine in 2003, sparked by unannounced Russian construction of a causeway from their side of the strait toward the island, which is Ukrainian territory. Russians offered various reasons for building the causeway, but Ukraine saw it as a threat to their territorial integrity. The dispute raised fears of an armed confrontation, but a settlement was negotiated.