Due to the current presence of NATO vessels in the Black Sea, especially those from the American navy, Turkey’s role as the controller of straits is becoming increasingly more important because both the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles may play a central...

Until the Ukrainian crisis Turkey preferred to maintain a balanced approached to the Black Sea region without speeding up the process of accepting Georgia and Ukraine as NATO members up. The Montreux Convention was of strategic importance for both Russia...