Ukraine and Turkey to conduct joint patrols in the Black Sea
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and the Turkish Coast Guard will jointly patrol the Black Sea.
According to the website of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the head of the Interior Ministry Arsen Avakov and the commander of the Turkish Coast Guard Ahmet Kendir reached this agreement.
“We conduct serious consultations and work with the commander of the Turkish Coast Guard, Ahmet Kandir regarding joint actions between our border guards such as monitoring and rapid response mechanisms, joint groups, information exchange. This will significantly strengthen our presence in the Black Sea," said Avakov.
Avakov also stressed that work is underway for the mechanisms of the joint actions of the Turkish Coast Guard and Ukrainian border guards.
Ukrainian and Turkish colleagues planned their meeting to be held in Kyiv and Odessa in September. According to Avakov, each service unit will have its own format of interaction.
The Head of the State Border Service Petro Tsyhykal noted that the border agencies of the countries renewed their bilateral agreements.
"The Turkish Coast Guard is a long-standing and reliable partner of the State Border Service of Ukraine in the framework of the Black Sea Border Cooperation Forum. In addition to the constant exchange of information, we conduct joint exercises of Marine Security Units, training officers and counteracting the illegal activities of poachers in the Black Sea," he said. Turkey’s Coastal Security consists of four regional commands. Its divisions are located in 66 seaports, and the staff employs 5 thousand people.
Security fleet includes 4 corvettes, 97 general-purpose ships and 73 small boats. Aviation fleet consists of 4 aircraft and 14 helicopters.