The Black Sea Naval Force (also known as BLACKSEAFOR or the Black Sea Naval Cooperation Task Group) is a
Black Sea naval cooperation program established in 2001 on the initiative of
Turkey with the participation of
Bulgaria,
Romania,
Ukraine,
Russia and
Georgia.
History
The original purpose of BLACKSEAFOR was "to cooperatively promote security and stability in the Black Sea
maritime area and beyond, strengthen friendship and good neighborly relations among the regional
States, and increase
interoperability among those states'
naval
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
forces".
The BLACKSEAFOR has conducted several joint naval drills since its formation, however it has been suspended several times. The 2008
Russo-Georgian war lead Georgia to suspend its involvement in BLACKSEAFOR drills and Russia to refuse to take part in drills involving Georgia. The partnership was effectively suspended in 2014 following the
Russian annexation of Crimea and
War in Donbas. In 2015, after a Russian plane was
shot down by Turkish forces, Russia suspended its BLACKSEAFOR membership.
See also
*
Operation Black Sea Harmony
Black Sea Harmony is a naval operation initiated by Turkey in March 2004 in accordance with UN Security Council Resolutions 1373, 1540 and 1566 aimed at deterring terrorism and asymmetric threats in the Black Sea. It is similar to the NATO-led O ...
*
1936 Montreux Convention governing the passage of military ships into the Black Sea
*
Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation
*
Operation Active Endeavour
References
Further reading
*
*{{cite book, last1=Pavliuk, first1=Oleksandr, last2=Klympush-Tsintsadze, first2=Ivanna, title=The Black Sea Region: Cooperation and Security Building: Cooperation and Security Building, date=2016, publisher=Routledge, isbn=9781315498232, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i2SlDAAAQBAJ&q=Black%20Sea%20Naval%20Force%20blackseafor&pg=PT47
Black Sea organizations
Bulgarian Navy
Military of Georgia (country)
Romanian Naval Forces
Russian Navy
Turkish Naval Forces
Ukrainian Navy
Multinational units and formations
Military units and formations established in 2001
Naval diplomacy