“Black Sea – a zone of peace. Status, prospects, threats”

The Black Sea is inseparable from the ancient Mediterranean civilization, from which today’s European civilization originates. A region rich in culture, history, archeology, natural beauty, but the Black Sea today is a region that is gaining geostrategic importance, and a region where, unfortunately, active militarization is underway, due to the conflict of interests between Russia and the West, which suffers the whole region.

These days Bulgaria’s Defence Minister Stefan Yanev said that he is against the deployment of NATO troops in Bulgaria.

“My position is that such a debate, respectively an approach, has the potential to lead to an undesirable increase in tensions in the region. Moreover, at this stage, there are no grounds to consider the monitored processes as a direct threat to the Alliance and the relevant security zone”, the minister said. Stefan Yanev does not believe that “there are the necessary circumstances that can justify a decision related to the deployment of additional troops on our territory. Such a decision would not correspond to the union interests or the national interest of Bulgaria,^[1]” he added.

In Burgas, Bulgaria, on the Black Sea coast, a scientific conference was held on December 2, or more precisely the national round table “Sea – border or door” 2021[2]. The national round table was divided into two sessions, “Black Sea – zone of peace. Status, Perspectives, Threats “and” Crimean Platform Risks and / or Opportunities for Bulgaria “. The conference was organized by the Black Sea Institute of Burgas and the Rostov State University of Economics, Rostov, Russia. Scientists, politicians, historians and experts from Bulgaria, Russia andNorth Macedonia took part in the conference.

The conference was opened by GeorgiShabev – Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forestry of Bulgaria, who stated that “the Black Sea should become a region in which all countries entering the Black Sea cooperate, without exception, and have coordinated approaches, where respect the interests of all players without exception. Contradictions between the countries that exist today hinder the active economic development of the region. Together we must ensure peace and security in the Black Sea. “The Black Sea region is not only an opportunity, but also the responsibility of all countries for its future.”

Today, between the countries of the Black Sea region – the old conflicts and the new ones between Russia and Ukraine are causing problems for everyone. The Crimean platform, which was adopted in Kiev this year, is aimed at a confrontation between Russia and the West, and the Crimean platform will have serious consequences for the entire Black Sea region.

Ivan Marazov, a politician from the Bulgarian Socialist Party, a professor of culturology, chief specialist on the Thracians in Bulgaria, a former culture minister and former presidential candidate: “All I want is for the Black Sea to be quiet and peaceful. The Black Sea should be for all countries that enter it, including Russia, Ukraine, Georgia and Turkey, so that the Black Sea does not become a military bridge. “The Black Sea is, of course, a door, not a border.”

In her statement, ZhenyaIlieva, who has her own business in the tourism sector, said: “The crisis in Ukraine must be resolved on the basis of the Minsk agreements in accordance with the UN resolution and, unfortunately, the Ukrainian side is completely sabotaging its participation in the Minsk process. The political PR moves and military adventures of the Ukrainian authorities can not be more important than our national interests and stability in the region.In this regard, provocations such as the one carried out by the British warship Defender, which entered Russian territorial waters in Crimea, lead to escalating tensions and pose a risk of a direct confrontation between nuclear powers and world powers, and hardly such “conflicts are in Bulgaria’s national interests, as well as in the interests of the EU and NATO.”

The Bulgarian view of the Black Sea security problems increasingly takes into account its national interests, which presuppose non-interference in conflicts, which was emphasized by all the conference experts.

Today, international relations are irreversibly transformed from a unipolar to a multipolar model. The gradual weakening of the unipolar model is accompanied by enormous tensions in relations between the West and the East; between a world that calls itself Euro-Atlantic and Russia and China on the other.The territory of the Black Sea should be used only for creative, peaceful activities. The Black Sea and the Black Sea region should be considered as important potentials for economic growth, social prosperity, educational and cultural development of all countries in the region.All countries in the region should pay attention to the political processes that are developing in the region. Of course, the region cannot be isolated from geostrategic flows, all countries must focus on protecting the region from all military tensions, deployment of military bases and military systems, patrolling warships and aircraft in the Black Sea, unplanned exercises by NATO and Russia leading to rising tensions.

Source for article – https://www.blacksea.bg/

[1]https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/short_news/bulgarian-defence-minister-against-having-nato-troops-in-country/

[2]https://blacksea.bg/novini-statii/cherno-more-zona-na-mira/