Caspian Report - Issue 06 - Winter 2014

After WW-II the Mediterranean Region was one
of the most important areas of strategic struggle
between the naval forces of the US and USSR.
They aimed at containing the influence of the
other, and the two superpowers also competed in
the search for allies in the region.
After WW-II the Mediterranean Region
was one of the most important areas
of strategic struggle between the
naval forces of the US and USSR. They
aimed at containing the influence of
the other, and the two superpowers
also competed in the search for allies
in the region. From the western or
NATO perspective, the Mediterranean
Region was seen as NATO’s ‘southern
flank’, and the West’s main military
instrument in the region was the US
Sixth Fleet. During the Cold War period,
the Soviet Naval task force had
the 5th Mediterranean squadron of
50 naval ships operating in the Mediterranean
Sea including the Turkish
Straits alerted powerful Black Sea
fleet about 200 war ships and submarines.
Soviet Union’s closest allies
were the progressive or radical Arab
states, such as Algeria, Libya, Syria,
and Egypt under Nasser. The Syrian
port city of Tartus served as the Soviet
Union’s only permanent maritime
base in the Mediterranean. Same as
the formerly Black Sea and Azov Sea
ports in Odessa, Illichivsk, Nikolayev
and Mariupol were economically very
important during Soviet times. These
ports provided more than 20% of
export supplies to the Soviet Union.
AFTER 1991,
RUSSIA HAS
BEEN BACK TO
ITS COASTAL
AND RATHER
LIMITED
ACCESS TO
THE BALTIC
AND BLACK
SEAS.
Trans-European gas pipelines “Bratstvo”
and “Soyuz”, and the oil pipeline
“Druzhba” run across the Ukrainian
territory. For Moscow, these facilities
had significant importance as
economic links with European states,
and remain very important for Russia
today.
After 1991, Russia has been back to
its coastal and rather limited access
to the Baltic and Black Seas. Suddenly
emerging; economic and other difficulties
forced Russia to withdraw its
navy from many regions of the world,
including the Mediterranean. However,
in maritime law and balance of
power perspective, both the United
States and Russia need Turkey, since
the capacity to keep the control of the
Turkish Straits was vested in Turkey
according to 1936 Montreux Convention.
After the dissolution of USSR,
Ukraine and Russia divided 50% of
their naval fleets in the Black Sea. But,
70% of Russian naval fleet stays in
Ukrainian sea bases. Russia also dislike
US bases in Bulgaria and Romania
which are former Soviet allies but
today new NATO members deployed
missiles, aircraft, ships in the Black
Sea . In this context, Russia joined the
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CASPIAN REPORT, WINTER 2014