RUSSIA’S GEOPOLITICAL AMBITION IN THE BLACK SEA

Abstract

Russia’s geopolitical interest in the Black Sea embodies its strategic dominance in the region. Its competitor in the littoral states of the Black Sea is apparently Turkey. The episodes of rivalry and cooperation between these two powers constitute the Black Sea geopolitical history. The much truncated Russia after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 created opportunities for the US-NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) alliance to expand incrementally into the Black Sea with the bouquet of NATO protectionism through membership. The littoral states sought membership in order to decouple themselves from Russia and expressed their deep allegiance to the new geopolitical formations in the Black Sea region on the frameworks of democracy. This infuriated Russia and drove it into action. The Russian aggression against Georgia in 2008 and Crimea in 2014 and the current attack on Ukraine to secure independence for Donetsk and Luhansk regions are expressions of cumulative frustration over NATO eastward expansion into its sphere of activity and hegemony. Therefore, this article explores the geo-political and geo-strategic significance of the Black Sea in the Russian scheme of things and its acts of aggressive protectionism in the region.