By working more closely with Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia, the European Commission intends to strengthen its position in the region’s crucial Black Sea area. In order to improve stability in the region, EU foreign affairs key Kaja Kallas said to reporters in Brussels on Wednesday, opening a new plan for the area, “amidst the landscape of Russia breaking into aircraft, attacking ports and shipping routes, and… front and center of this work is improving security in the region.” The Black Sea territories seven nations, including Russia, Georgia, Turkey, and Romania, two of the EU’s member states, as well as the EU’s candidate for entry. Another aspiring International position, Moldova, has accessibility via the Danube River. The Black Sea has been a staging ground for Russian barricades of Ukrainian grain export, which are crucial to global food security, since Russia first launched its full invasion of Ukraine in 2022. More recently, Kallas said, the EU has become concerned about possible Russian attacks on crucial underwater infrastructure, including cables for online and communications, as well as so-called” dark ship” shipping, which allows Russia to avoid International sanctions on its oil exports.
What does the Union suggest?
The overall goal is to expand on participation in business, power, and transportation. According to the plan document, the most important part of the new proposal is the establishment of a “maritime security hub” to promote” situational awareness and information sharing on the Black Sea, real-time monitoring from space to ground, and first warning of possible threats and malignant activities.” Kallas added that it might also aid in the investigation of a potential future ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. Another objective is to encourage the development of regional transportation infrastructure, in part” to facilitate military mobility so troops and equipment can be deployed where they are needed, when they are needed,” she said. However, it is unclear where the hub’s base would be located and which nations would be involved, as well as how much money would be given to it.
What might the nations of the Black Sea do?
While most Black Sea nations, aside from Russia, are cooperating with the EU, some are more in tune with the goals of the bloc of 27 nations than others. The governments of Ukraine and Moldova are attempting to acclimatize to the EU. Although their bids to join the EU are currently thawed, Georgia and Turkey are also EU candidate nations. In recent years, Armenia and the EU have become closer, and Azerbaijan has a complicated relationship with Russia and the EU. Turkey is a close NATO allies and a NATO military allies. However, it also has its own interests to take into account as a strong regional player. According to Stefan Meister, head of the Center for Order and Governance in Eastern Europe, Russia, and Central Asia at the German Council on Foreign Relations, Turkey has an interest in preventing the US and other Nato nations from entering the Black Sea region. He noted that Ankara is hedging its bets, resolving its responsibilities to NATO while attempting to avoid inciting Moscow. According to Meister, Ankara “understands Russia as a security threat, supports Ukraine in the war, and does not support the Russian annexation of Crimea.” However, it still purchases Russian resources and benefits from trade with Ukraine thanks to the sanctions imposed by the West.
The relationship between the EU and the Black Sea region has changed:
After Bulgaria and Romania joined the bloc in 2007, the EU first began showing more interest in the region’s traditionally dominated Black Sea region. China has expanded its presence there as well. A Chinese conglomerate that includes entities that are subject to US sanctions was awarded the tender to build a deep sea port at Anaklia last year. Tinatin Akhvlediani, a fellow in foreign policy research at the Brussels-based Center for European Policy Studies, told DW that “each decade, EU engagement was less strategic, and China’s footprint was smaller.” According to DGAP expert Meister, the Black Sea is now at the center of European security and is crucial for connectivity with other regions like the South Caucasus, the Caspian Sea, Central Asia, and the Middle East. He emphasized that a lot of the details regarding the new security hub’s participation, funding, and resources were still ambiguous. The European Commission announced on Wednesday that gathering ministers from EU member states and Black Sea nations would be the next step in a discussion of how to advance the proposal.
