Black Sea demining: three NATO countries agree on joint action

Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria are nearing an agreement to create a joint force to clear mines drifting into their parts of the Black Sea as part of the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Bloomberg reports on this with reference to individuals familiar with the matter.

The parties are close to concluding an agreement on the formation of joint minesweeping forces.

Details of the agreement will be discussed at a meeting of the three countries’ Deputy Defense Ministers in Ankara on Wednesday, November 22.

However, it’s unclear whether a final accord will be signed after the two-day meeting.

So far, the defense ministries of Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria have not commented on the discussions.

The meeting comes a few days after Turkish Navy Commander Admiral Ercüment Tatlıoğlu commented against the presence of naval forces from other NATO allies, including the United States, in the Black Sea.

According to him, the presence of ships from non-Black Sea countries could further increase tensions in the region.

If approved, the joint minesweeping force of Turkey, Romania, and Bulgaria would not be considered a NATO operation but would be the first major joint action by the Black Sea allies since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Negotiations between the countries on joint activities in the Black Sea started in October this year.

As previously reported, on October 5, a Turkish-flagged cargo ship hit a mine in the Black Sea off the coast of Romania. It is noted that the cargo ship sustained minor damage.

And on October 19, the minesweeping group of the Bulgarian and Romanian navies started trawling the Black Sea off the coast of Bulgaria along the route of the new Ukrainian sea corridor.