The New Black Sea: How the War in Ukraine is Reshaping the Region

The International Institute for Peace, in cooperation with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation for Multilateral Dialogue, the Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies, and The Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, with the support of the City of Vienna, hosted the The New Black Sea: How the War in Ukraine is Reshaping the Region event this week.

Panellists included REES Affiliate Dr Leila Alieva

Panellists:

  • Vasyl Filipchuk,  International Center for Policy Studies, Kyiv 

  • Leila Alieva,  Oxford University

  • Richard Grieveson, Deputy Director, Vienna Institute for International Economic Studies

  • Daria Isachenko, Associate Researcher at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP), Berlin

Moderation:

  • Hannes Swoboda, President of the International Institute for Peace (IIP); former MEP, Vienna

Content:

The war in Ukraine has led to a profound transformation of both the European security system as well as the entire global order. One of the regions that have felt the impacts of the war most directly is the Black Sea.  

The Black Sea spans countries with deep historical and cultural ties that have nevertheless failed to form a fully-fledged region, in part due to the diversity of its countries. The region includes members of both the EU (Bulgaria and Romania) and NATO (Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey) as well as the post-Soviet, Western-oriented states of Moldova, Ukraine, and Georgia – all of which have had military conflicts with Russia. In addition, Armenia and Azerbaijan are deeply tied to the Black Sea region through their close economic and security relations with Russia and Turkey, respectively. Finally, Russia remains an important player in the area, although its presence in the Black Sea has decreased significantly after the collapse of the USSR – a reality that the Kremlin has been trying to alter by force in Ukraine since 2014.  

Apart from the obvious danger of the ongoing war in Ukraine, other threats to the region loom large, including the spillover of fighting to Transnistria in neighbouring Moldova, the proliferation and illicit trade in weapons, human trafficking, and disruptions to global food and energy supplies. In addition, the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh and beyond is still very much on the agenda. 

Finally, Western sanctions against Russia are hitting the country’s economy hard. With the EU searching for replacements for Russian energy supplies, other countries in the Black Sea region – especially Azerbaijan – are becoming increasingly important partners. 

You can watch the recorded event here.