The Black Sea Region. A geopolitical Trojan horse?

Issue 5/2019 now available! The Black Sea region is quickly becoming a geopolitical battleground which is gaining the interest of major powers, regional players and smaller countries – and the stakes are only getting higher.

August 26, 2019 - New Eastern Europe - Issue 5 2019Magazine

From the Editors:

The theme of this special issue of New Eastern Europe was prepared in co-operation with the Polish Embassy in Tbilisi which is currently serving as the NATO contact point. We invited authors, primarily from Georgia, to provide a variety of perspectives including security, culture, history, geopolitics, economics and geo-strategy.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, the Black Sea has turned into a region which has become a focal point of competition between the East and West. This was the case in August 2008 when Russia attacked Georgia in the Five Day War or in March 2014 when, in the aftermath of the EuroMaidan Revolution in Kyiv, the Crimean peninsula was annexed by the Russian Federation. Keeping these two events in mind, it is suffice to say that the region of the Black Sea can be perceived as a geopolitical Trojan horse.

In this issue, our authors illustrate the growing interdependencies that are emerging in the region. Their analyses help us imagine how future developments that may take place here will largely depend on wider international factors. And the risks that go with these developments, as our authors warn, include the cost of western inaction. It is our aim that with the publication of these texts, we can help raise awareness of the situation and sentiments surrounding the Black Sea region.

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CONTENTS

The Black Sea region. A complex and dynamic space
Tomasz Stępniewski

Security takes centre stage in the Black Sea
Zurab Agladze

Georgia’s long and uncertain road to NATO membership
Giorgi Goguadze

The shift of dominance in the Black Sea
Sophia Petriashvili

A sea of insecurity
Emil Avdaliani

A playground for influence
Leo Sikharulidze

All is not quiet on the eastern front
David Batashvili

The dimensions of Georgia’s frozen conflicts
Nino Kukhianidze

OPINION & ANALYSIS