Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria are ready for an agreement on demining the Black Sea. It is planned to be signed on January 11 in Istanbul.
This was stated by Turkish Defense Minister Yashar Güler, reports TRT Haber.
"As part of the tripartite initiative launched by our country against the mine threat in the Black Sea, on November 22-23, we held the third round of the meeting of the Task Force on Mine Action in the Black Sea, which was hosted by our Ministry. We also plan to hold a signing ceremony in Istanbul on January 11, 2024, with the participation of the defense ministers of the three countries," the minister said.
In the context of full-scale Russian aggression, Güler expressed hope that "this war, which affects the whole world, will end as soon as possible." He added that the territorial integrity of Ukraine must be protected.
- Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, the Romanian, Bulgarian and Turkish militaries have regularly defused mines drifting in their waters in the Black Sea. In October, Bloomberg wrote that the countries are discussing a joint project on demining the sea. Countries can create a joint unit. The project itself is not a NATO operation.