The Turkish government has teamed up with Black Sea neighbours Bulgaria and Romania to clear sea mines off Ukraine, just a few days after pulling the plug on British plans to provide minesweepers to Kyiv.
Ministers of the three Black Sea states — which are all Nato members — met in Istanbul on Thursday to form a Black Sea Mine Countermeasures Task Group.
A Turkish defence ministry statement was long on eulogies about the initiative but short on operational details.
“We jointly decided to sign a protocol between the three countries in order to fight more effectively against the mine danger in the Black Sea by improving our existing close cooperation and coordination,” Turkish defence minister Yasar Guler said.
Drifting mines have been a constant danger to shipping since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
Both belligerents are understood to have employed mines — to prevent Russia’s navy from landing in Odesa or to hamper Ukraine’s naval and commercial shipping in the area.
Several commercial vessels have hit floating mines over the past two years while sailing near Ukraine’s ports on the Danube River or around the northern shores of the Black Sea.
One of the most serious incidents happened last month, when two seafarers were injured on the Greek-controlled, 8,800-dwt cargo ship Vyssos (built 2007) off the mouth of the Danube.
That incident came nearly three weeks after the UK said it would send two Royal Navy mine hunter ships to Ukraine to protect merchant vessels in the area.
That plan was thwarted by Turkey, through the waters of which Ukraine-bound ships have to pass.
The Turkish government cited the international treaty of Montreux, which obliges it to keep the Bosphorus neutral.
Arguments that the mine sweepers are defensive in nature did not persuade Ankara to make an exception to its ban on naval ships entering the Black Sea.
Guler reiterated on Thursday that Turkey would stick faithfully to the treaty.
“We have implemented and are implementing the Montreux Straits Convention … carefully, responsibly and impartially,” he said.
