Throughout its long history, the Black Sea region has known many Asian and European rulers. There are currently a number of powers claiming influence: Turkey, Russia and the European Union, together with the USA, while the influence of China is increasing.
Russian aggression in Ukraine is ongoing. This is why, in presenting the powers involved, we prefer to limit ourselves to Turkey and China, particularly because China’s commitment shows the global importance of this region, its policies offer an alternative to the strong political and military interventions of the other players.
What do we actually mean when we talk about the Black Sea region? Geographically, it is the region that stretches from the Balkans to the Caucasus and from the steppes of northern Ukraine and Russia to Anatolia. Politically, however, the region includes the countries that lie on the shores of this sea: Turkey, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Romania and Bulgaria. There is also a wider Black Sea region, which includes the countries that have signed the Charter of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, that is, in addition to the countries mentioned above, Albania, Greece, Moldova, Armenia and Azerbaijan.
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