Black Sea region

The Black Sea region comprises the lands and coastal waters around the Black Sea, spanning southeastern Europe and western Asia. Its societies have been connected by maritime trade, migration, and empire.

Black Sea: An inland sea between southeastern Europe and western Asia, connected to the Mediterranean through the Bosporus and other straits. Its coastlines and narrow outlets define the region’s central geography.
Ancient Greek colonization: The establishment of Greek settlements around the Mediterranean and Black Sea from the eighth century BCE onward. Greek colonies connected distant Black Sea shores through commerce and shared institutions.
Treaty of Lausanne: The 1923 treaty that established the international borders of modern Turkey and settled aspects of its relations with the Allied powers. Its convention on the straits helped shape access between the sea and the Mediterranean.
Caspian Sea: The world’s largest inland body of water, bordered by eastern Europe and western Asia. The two seas are linked by energy corridors and the Caucasus, but not by a natural waterway.
Bosporus: A strait in Istanbul connecting the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara. This chokepoint links the region to Mediterranean shipping routes.
Colchis: An ancient kingdom on the eastern Black Sea coast, broadly located in present-day western Georgia. Its history illustrates the region’s early links between Caucasus societies and the Mediterranean.
Montreux Convention Regarding the Regime of the Straits: A 1936 agreement regulating passage through the Turkish Straits and the presence of warships in the Black Sea. It remains central to the region’s naval balance and maritime access.
Sea of Azov: A shallow sea connected to the Black Sea through the Kerch Strait and bordered by Ukraine and Russia. It is the Black Sea’s northern extension and a sensitive maritime subregion.
Danube: Europe’s second-longest river, flowing through ten countries before reaching the Black Sea. Its delta and river corridor connect inland Europe to the sea.
Bosporan Kingdom: An ancient state centered on the Kerch Strait that combined Greek cities with local dynasties. It controlled a major grain-export corridor on the northern coast.

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