CURRENT SAFETY CHALLENGES IN THE BLACK SEA BASIN

Abstract

The events of the last decade are a vivid indicator of the hybridization of traditional forms of military confrontation. Today, the Russian Federation (RF) is among the frontrunners in promoting the policy of escalation of conflicts and an aggressive foreign policy course, since starting with the attempted annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in 2014 and the military invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the tactics and strategy of its actions in relation to the independent territories of neighboring states have become increasingly predictable. The author is particularly concerned about this state of affairs in the Black Sea basin, where numerous facts of disregard for the norms of international law in the use of maritime space, in particular, the global principle of freedom of navigation, have been exposed. The author highlighted the main events and factors initiated or provoked by the Russian side that created threats to global and regional security and indicated the inevitable consequences of such actions. By focusing on some quantitative indicators of the damage caused by Russia, a conclusion is presented on the inadmissibility of neglecting the generally accepted rules of shipping safety. Based on the facts and signs of violations by the aggressor country of the rules of operation of automated information systems created in the interests of safety at sea, described in the article, possible options for legal assessment of such acts within the criminal legislation of Ukraine are described. The list of fundamental normative acts of international law in the field of sea use is given, the right of peaceful passage through the territorial sea of all ships is indicated, and the low relevance of certain generally accepted conventions and agreements is noted due to Russia's impunity in obstructing shipping in order to harm the economic interests of Ukraine. The main security guarantor institutions: NATO, EU, BSEC were mentioned, as well as proposals were made regarding key steps to improve the security situation in the Black Sea basin.