No Enthusiasm: NATO operations in the Black Sea region

10.11.2016
Georgia

NATO is activating around Russia's borders. Operation Sea Guardian is beginning in the Mediterranean Sea and the Noble Partner 2016 military drills are starting in Georgia.

Sea Guardian

During the last summit of NATO less than a month ago, this operation of monitoring the Mediterranean Sea with the official aim of countering illegal migration, and informally for reconnaissance near the Russian border, was discussed in detail. However, the beginning of this operation was marked by a scandal.

Turkey, participating in the operation with its frigate, recommended its “allies" not to carry out the operation near its borders, in the Aegean Sea, as was planned earlier. The defense minister of Turkey, Fikri Yshik, announced this decision during the summit, adding that NATO should shut down the program in general.

Nevertheless, at this moment, Sea Guardian has gathered three ships and three submarines of NATO, Greek and Spanish submarines, Italian, Bulgarian and Turkish frigates, and patrol aircrafts from Greece, Turkey, Italy, Spain and Portugal.

Noble Partner

The ten-day exercises in Georgia on the territory of the NATO-Georgia Joint Center for Training and Assessment in Krtsanisi have also been marked by a serious scandal, at the center of which was the murder of a young citizen of Georgia by NATO troops.

Under public pressure, President of Georgia Margvelashvili called for a thorough investigation of this crime. The nature of the young man’s injuries put into question the official view that he had attacked the sentry. Apparently, the boy was actually shot dead in the back off of the territory of the military facility.

All of this will certainly not help achieve the main goal of these exercises: the consolidation and expansion of cooperation between Georgia and NATO.

Related links
Black Sea: A great unknown for NATO
NATO Summit: agenda and background
NATO doesn't learn from its mistakes
NATO — private club of war criminals
NATO is worthless and falling apart
Georgia
NATO
Mediterranean Sea
war games
crisis
Turkey