NATO commander says Black Sea of strategic importance for enlarged alliance

spacewar.com ^ | Oct 14, 2003 | AFP

[Destro]

NATO commander says Black Sea of strategic importance for enlarged alliance

SOFIA (AFP) Oct 14, 2003

The Black Sea will be of strategic importance in NATO after it takes in seven new members next year, among them Bulgaria, the alliance's top military commander in southern Europe said in Sofia Tuesday.

Admiral Gregory Johnson said Bulgaria, which lies on the Black Sea, could play a vital role in protecting the alliance's interest in the region.

"The Black Sea is going to become a very strategic path for the flow of ressources," Johnson said.

"The Bulgarian navy could play a very substantive role for the security of the southeastern flank of NATO. (It) can provide a valuable contribution for our collective security with proactive deployments in the Black Sea."

Bulgaria, a former communist state, is set join NATO along with Romania, which also borders on the Black Sea, as well as Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia and Slovakia.

The Bulgarian navy is being reformed along NATO guidelines and will next year dispose of 62 ships compared to 90 in 1997.

The manpower of the Bulgarian military will be reduced by more than half from 95,450 soldiers in 1997 to 45,000 in 2004.

Projects abound to carry oil from regions east of the Black Sea to the West, with one project linking the Bulgarian port of Burgas to the Greek port of Alexandropolis.

The Burgas-Alexandropolis pipeline, a scheme dating back to the Soviet era, would carry oil pumped from Kazakhstan's Caspian shelf to Russia's Black Sea port of Novorossiyisk on to Western markets.

A rival, US-backed project, now under construction is a pipeline from Azerbaijan to Turkey's Meditarranean port of Ceyhan.

The eastern Black Sea is also close to northern Iraq and Iran.

[Destro]

"Proactive" NATO deployments in the Black Sea, eh? Bosnia to Kosovo to FYROM to Bulgaria and on to.......

Proactive: acting in anticipation of future problems, needs, or changes.

[Destro]

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[Destro]

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[Brad’s Gramma]

SON! CALL HOME NOW!!!

[marron]

The Black Sea was a Soviet lake, and Central Asia was the back of beyond. The world is shifting on its axis, and we are going to see it.

I find all of this fascinating in the extreme.

[Truth666]

"with proactive deployments in the Black Sea"
Russia has warned IN THE MEDIA about the new parts of the "pipeline" (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kirghizia) : destroy the pipeline or face nuclear war

[RussianConservative]

"The Black Sea is going to become a very strategic path for the flow of ressources," Johnson said.

Gee and I think it for national defense of members, now we see, it for business....how shocking. /sarcasm

If NATO was about defense, it accept Russia, biggest military power on Europe, not Lithuania which might have brigade or two and require more defense then worth it. NATO with American help become military arm for Fifth Reich.

[RussianConservative]

"Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov has said his country does not rule out a pre-emptive military strike anywhere in the world if the national interest demands it.

That funny, since it sound like Bush Doctrine...or should new title be: What good for Goose not good for Gander? or Double Standards are Our Game, Hypocracy Our Name?

[Pubbie]

"NATO with American help become military arm for Fifth Reich."

What Reich? After 911, our Western European "Allies" said 911" was not an act of war"!

If Russia were in NATO, and Bin Laden killed 3,000 Russians, the Europeans would do NOTHING for you too.

You're being paranoid, NATO is a useless organization.

The only member nation that funds it's military properly is the US. Every other nation, including Britain, has declining, poorly funded militaries.

Also Congress and the White House is pissed off at NATO for not helping in Iraq, so even America doesn't take NATO seriously anyway.

NATO is in reality only a very large "Mutual Protection Pact".

If Russia wants to form a military alliance with the "West", then You should make a bilateral agreement with the US, because I assure you, if Russia ever faces a major military threat, the Western Europeans will make excuses about how Russia should not "Act Unilaterally".