EU proposes Black Sea maritime security hub

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — A member of the Croatian Zapovjedništvo Specialjalnih Snaga (ZSS) emerges from the water during an over the beach (OTB) exercise alongside members of U.S. Naval Special Warfare Task Unit Europe (NSWTU-E) in Split, Croatia, April 14, 2022. (U.S. Army photo by Warrant Officer Patrik Orcutt via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)

BRUSSELS  -  The European Union on Wednesday proposed creating a hub to boost security in the Black Sea by gathering information from multiple countries to monitor the strategically important region more closely. 

The move comes as European officials warn about a continued threat from Russia and as concerns deepen across the EU about risks to undersea infrastructure. 

The hub would be set up in the short-term and "with a sense of priority due to the Russian war of aggression," an EU document said. 

The hub will use contributions from Black Sea and EU countries and "enhance maritime situational awareness and information sharing on the Black Sea, real-time monitoring from space to seabed, and early warning", the document said. 

The proposal from the European Commission and the bloc's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas notes that the hub would include monitoring of submarine cables, offshore installations and gas and wind energy operations.

It would use underwater sensors, remotely piloted vessels and surveillance drones, it added.

Kallas told reporters that the hub could also help monitor the maritime element of a future peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine.

 (Reporting by Lili Bayer; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)