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Turkey proposes new security measures for Black Sea
Turkey has proposed new security measures for Black Sea coastal countries, an issue which came to the forefront of the world's agenda with the recent Russia-Georgia war. "We are considering expanding the content of the mandate of Blackseafor," Gen. İlker Başbuğ, the chief of general staff, told journalists during a meeting with representatives of the print media Tuesday.The Black Sea Naval Co-Operation Task Group, or Blackseafor, a multinational naval on-call peace task force, was established in 2001 through the initiative of Turkey to enhance peace and stability in the Black Sea region. Along with Turkey, Russia, Georgia, Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria are the participants in the task force. The purpose of Turkey's initiative was to show that the security of the region could be provided by the Black Sea coastal countries and there was no need for NATO presence in the Black Sea. The conflict between two littoral countries, Georgia and Russia, which turned into a limited war, drew attention to the region again, especially after the United States' decision to send warships to Georgia to extend humanitarian aid. "Our primary view with regard to the Black Sea is that the region's security should be provided by the littoral countries. If it changes, there will surely be a mess," Başbuğ said. "We could broaden the scope of the Blackseafor. Russia and Ukraine responded positively," he said, without giving details of the proposals. As the task force is composed only of naval forces, Turkey's proposal could include the inclusion of air and land forces to the Blackseafor, but this remains unconfirmed. The current mandate of the force includes search and rescue operations, humanitarian assistance, mine counter measures, environmental protection and goodwill visits. Meanwhile a senior Foreign Ministry official confirmed the initiative and said only Bulgaria was cold to the proposal thus far. Two new NATO members, Romania and Bulgaria, and likely future member Georgia are seeking a greater NATO presence in the Black Sea to balance Russia's powerful fleet in the inland sea. "This sea is very small to carry out powerful naval military presence of different countries, especially of the U.S. and Russia," a senior official said, adding that Turkey made this point clear to both countries during the tense days of the Caucasus conflict. "No one can ask us anything about the Montreux Treaty. It's there and will remain so," Başbuğ told journalists. The treaty limits the entrance to the Black Sea by military vessels of countries without direct access to the sea in terms of both duration and tonnage. The Blackseafor is intended to be used in the Black Sea, but if required, could be deployed out of the Black Sea should the parties so choose through a decision by consensus. It may also be available for possible employment in the United Nations or the Organization For Security And Cooperation In Europe-mandated operations. A proposal to divvy-up the Black Sea between Russia and Turkey. Ride that tiger, Turkey ... Posted by: mrp 2008-09-19 |
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