Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has triggered a profound military and political crisis in Europe, particularly in its Baltic-Black Sea region.

It is only natural that, as a result of this crisis, the seeds of new defense alliances have begun to emerge. Thus, in Southeast Europe, Ukraine, Romania, and Moldova began to form a regional security alliance known as the “Odessa Triangle”.

Shortly before the war, Poland, Ukraine, and Lithuania announced the creation of a similar international organization. This initiative was then named the “Lublin Triangle”.

Almost immediately after Russia’s invasion of Georgia in 2008, a new security alliance of states was established in Northern Europe in 2009, named “Northern Defense Cooperation” (NORDEFCO). It included Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland.

If you look at a map, you can see that all these international security alliances have emerged along the border with Russia, and their main focus has been the creation of a new collective regional security system to protect against the Russian Federation’s aggressive foreign policy.

In the fifth year of Russia’s war against Ukraine, it has become clear that bringing the conflict to an end and establishing lasting peace in this region of the world requires the combined efforts of all interested countries, and first and foremost those that share a border with Russia or are located very close to it.

It is quite evident that, in order to restore normal economic activity here, measures must also be taken to ensure the safety of navigation in the waters of the Black and Baltic Seas. One way to address this issue is to share Ukraine’s experience in countering Russian aggression with allied states and to foster closer cooperation among all interested countries in the development of the European defense-industrial complex.

In the near future, the Institute for Global Politics, together with its partners, will organize a series of public events where, during an open public discussion, participants will be able to express their views and proposals regarding the creation of new military-political alliances to defend against Russian aggression, ways to achieve a just and lasting peace in Europe, and the restoration of normal economic activity in the Baltic-Black Sea region following the end of the Russian-Ukrainian war.

Oleh Bereziuk,
Institute for Global Politics