Xenophon Paper 2 pdf - ICBSS

clear cut: Moscow was loath to see any expansion of US influence in its neighbourhood.
Turkey’s opposition, on the other hand, has been driven by its concern to preserve the
current legal regime of the Turkish Straits (covering the Strait of the Dardanelles, the Sea
of Marmara and the Bosporus) established under the Montreux Convention of 1936 and
thus, the political and military balances that have emerged in the region since the end
of the Cold War. For the first time in history, multi-layered, multi-dimensional and
multilateral cooperation schemes have emerged in the region concerning the Sea.
In order to strengthen maritime domain security on the Black Sea, the Black Sea Naval
Co-Operation Task Group (BLACKSEAFOR) had been initiated by Turkey at the second
Chiefs of the Black Sea Navies (CBSN) meeting which was held in Varna, Bulgaria in
1998. By acknowledging asymmetric maritime risks, Turkey also initiated Black Sea
Harmony (BSH) in March 2004, which constitutes a permanent naval operation established
in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolutions 1373, 1540 and 1566 aimed at
deterring terrorism and asymmetric threats. On 27 December 2006, Russia officially
joined the Black Sea Harmony initiative and a protocol on information exchange regarding
Ukraine’s participation was signed in Ankara on 17 January 2007. Currently, the operation
is being conducted in Turkey’s territorial waters in the Black Sea in order to deter possible
risks and threats in the maritime area. It includes the Turkish Navy’s periodic surveillance
and reconnaissance operations in these waters.
The security situation in the WBSR has been inevitably affected by the widening gap
between Euro-Atlantic policy towards the region and Russia. Although later granted,
the BSEC delayed (under Russian opposition) the consideration of the US application
for observer status in March 2006. While former Warsaw Pact members of the BSEC issued
a statement stating their regret about the US’ exclusion, NATO members Greece and
Turkey kept silent. To some extent, the controversy and dissent within the Transatlantic
community over the Black Sea has been mollified over the course of 2006 through a
greater emphasis given to the EU’s role in the region and through eventual efforts
undertaken by the US towards encouraging regional partners to join the Turkish-proposed
Black Sea Harmony operation, nonetheless, the squabbles of the last few years have
left a bad aftertaste.
Conclusion
The Black Sea countries have, since the end of the Cold War, created a multitude of
intergovernmental and non-governmental organisations and cooperation schemes. The
EU and NATO on the other hand have now expanded onto the shores of the Black Sea
where they face a new region with diverse problems and potential reaches. The BSEC,
bringing together 350 million people and covering 20 million square kilometres, has
been the most comprehensive and institutionalised structure within the region. Since
its initiation in 1992, it has succeeded in creating an extensive cooperation scheme in
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