A U.S. drone's dramatic encounter with Russian fighter jets this week highlighted the importance of a body of water that has long been central to the rivalry between Moscow and the West.
Described by some as “a potential powder keg,” the Black Sea is slightly larger than California and has six countries on its coast: NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria as well as Georgia and Ukraine, which are considered U.S. partners but are not part of the alliance.At one time, the U.S.
Russia has blamed the U.S. for the confrontation, denying that its jet came into contact with the drone and accusing Washington of provocation by conducting surveillance near Russian airspace. The drone encounter pushed Shaheen, who visited a NATO airbase in Romania last month, to reintroduce a bill with Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, that would require the Biden administration to produce an interagency strategy within 180 days to deepen U.S. economic and military ties with countries in the region.
Glen Grant, a former British officer who has worked as a military trainer and consultant for Ukraine and Bulgaria, said that the Black Sea is a particular weak point for NATO’s eastern flank. Steven Horrell, a former U.S. naval intelligence officer who studies the region for the Center for European Policy Analysis, a Washington-based think tank, said Turkey — which serves as NATO’s southern bulwark and has one of the most powerful militaries in the alliance — “has to be central” to any strategy regarding the Black Sea.
“We have to rely on the three NATO allies [Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey] and the Black Sea states to lead,” Horrell said. “It has been challenging for the three of them to come together in one voice in the same way that, for instance, the Baltic States have done.”Turkey is a key player in the Black Sea but not always a reliable partner for the U.S.Looming over everything is the grain deal, which expires on Sunday.
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