The Black Sea, besides being a transit zone for oil, is rich in energy deposits which caused it to be defined as ‘The New North Sea’. The exploration of these resources has accelerated in the past decade due to advances in technology that enabled the limits imposed by the presence of underlying geological risks and…

A further crucial element in the balance of power in the Black Sea is that of the control of the straits of the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. In past centuries, these passages represented the largest prize in the geopolitical confrontation between Russia and Turkey. On the basis of the Montreux Convention of 1936, passage through…

The Black Sea is situated in the centre of the vast geographical area that runs from the Adriatic to the Caspian Sea. Together with the Maghreb, the Mashreq and the Balkans, it constitutes one of the sub-regions of the Mediterranean Sea. The different strategic priorities of the countries facing the basin with their heterogeneous historical…

It was the conflict that broke out between Russia and Georgia in 2008 that challenged the balance of power imposed by the United States in the area of the Black Sea. Georgia, after winning independence in 1991, adopted a pro-western stance with the aim of joining the North Atlantic Treaty. This induced Tbilisi to promote…