Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey to Sign Black Sea Mine Clearance Agreement in January

The three NATO Black Sea states - Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey - are planning to sign an agreement on joint mine clearance of the Black Sea on 11 January in Istanbul, TRT Haber reports.

At a press conference on Saturday, Turkish National Defence Minister Yasar Guler mentioned the demining of the Black Sea in the context of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

He stressed that Ankara is "carefully, responsibly and impartially" implementing the Montreux Convention (regulating navigation through the Bosphorus and Dardanelles straits connecting the Black and Mediterranean Seas).

"As part of the Trilateral Initiative launched under the leadership of our country to combat the mine threat in the Black Sea, on 22-23 November, we held the third round of the Black Sea Mine Action Task Force meeting hosted by our ministry," the minister reminded.

"We are also planning to hold a signing ceremony in Istanbul on 11 January 2024 with the participation of the defence ministers of the three countries," he added.

Guler also expressed his hope that "this war, which affects the whole world, will end as soon as possible" and that Ukraine's territorial integrity will be protected.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Romanian, Bulgarian and Turkish military diving teams have been regularly clearing mines drifting in their waters. In October, it was first reported that the three countries were discussing the creation of a joint force to clear the Black Sea of mines.

This minesweeping force would not be considered a NATO operation, but would be the first major joint action by the Black Sea allies since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

As The Gaze previously reported, the UK Navy will provide Ukraine with two ships to search for and destroy sea mines in the Black Sea. Those are two Sandown-class minehunters. The sole purpose of this class of ships is to search for and destroy sea mines using remotely operated search vehicles. They also have anti-aircraft and anti-submarine weapons.

In addition to the minehunters, the UK will create a maritime coalition with Norway, which will provide ships and vehicles to strengthen Ukraine's defence capabilities in the Black Sea.