Why is the Strait of Bosphorus so important to the world's economy and military?
A scenic edge of water cutting across the city Istanbul that separate the two
continent Asia and Europe, while conjoining the east and the west.
The Bosphorous or the Strait of Istanbul, an internationally significant waterway
located in northwestern turkey. It links the European part of the
city with the Asian part of it, remaining as an economically important waterway in the region.
The Strait of Istanbul holds the record as the world’s narrower strait used for Navigation
by connecting the Black Sea through the Dardanelles strait with the Mediterranean Sea.
For centuries, this narrow strait played a major role in both the economy and military because
each year, more than 4800 vessels are transiting making its one of the busiest maritime gateways.
An extremely fast water current that flows from North to South and subsurface concurrents
causes swirls and eddies bring additional difficulties to anyone who is passing through.
Bosphorous is one of the world’s economically most important checkpoints for maritime transit
oil because around 38% of Russia’s maritime crude oil exports are benefitted from the strait.
The strait is also the primary oil export route for Eurasian countries such as Azerbaijan
and Kazakhstan. It is estimated that more than 3% of the global oil supply or, around 3 million
barrels of oil per day, 20 million tons per year of petroleum products passes through this iconic
waterway. When it comes to the dimensions, The Bosphorous strait is 30 Km long with the maximum
width being 3.7 Km at the northern entrance and a minimum width of 750 m between two Ottoman-era
forts, Rumeli and Anadoluhisari. While the depth of the strait range from 36m to 124m midstream.
Bosphorus strait won’t stop just being one of the busiest commercial straits, It is also a
very heavy fishing region. This is due to its natural setup where two seas meet each other,
in other words, the Black sea meets the Meditatarian sea causing unique ocean
currents and temperature difference in water which attracts a large number of fish species
contributing to the economy of the region. The economy of the Bosphorous strait never
limited to the maritime activities, three suspension bridges; 5 July Martyrs Bridge,
Yavuz Sultan Selim Bridge and Fatih Sultan Mehmet Bridge shuttling the traffic between two
continents connecting a vast network of connecting roads which contribute to a significant movement
of goods in and out of Turkey. Furthermore, the Bosphorus strait also contains two tunnels,
The Marmaray Tunnel which is 13.6 km long and runs 60 meters below sea level
and Eurasia Tunnel which is 14.5 km long and runs 106 meters below sea level are passing through it
accomplishing millions of trade activities across the continents.
Aside from the commercial and fishing side; The military importance of the Bosphorus strait
was recognized for centuries. Many rulers and vast empires starting from the ancient greeks
used the waterway to import grains while the Romans made their capital around the Bosphorus,
Then came the Ottomans who used the strait to expand their regional
ambitions and control the entire black sea. Even after that control of Bosphorus
has remained in the bone of contention and crucial wars were fought over it.
In 1920 the treaty of Sevres demilitarized the strait of Bosphorous and Dardanelles
strait making them international waters. The treaty was annulled during the Turkish war on
independence and three years later the strait was handed over to an international commission
but it was only in 1936 that the ownership of the strait was given to Turkey.
When the Montreux convention regarding the regime of the strait was signed
decades later, access to the strait is still controlled by this convention.
It gives free passage to all civilian vessels during peacetime. Warships from the black sea
region also can pass through the strait with prior notice. But they can be blocked if Turkey is under
the threat in times of war. Apart from Turkey Bosphorus is crucial for the Black sea countries.
For Russia, It’s their first access leading to the Mediterranean Sea and only warm water
exit available for them. This makes the strait important to Russia’s commercial interest as well
as Military ones. Russian Warships like names have become regular sightings in the Bosphorous
as it increased operations in Syria. Especially when it comes to the Turkish invasion of Syria,
the Movement of the Russian military across the Bosphorus Strait increased in an exemplary manner.
For example, only in 2017, more than 53,000 military vessels have pass-through this straight.
On the 28th of February 2020, Reuters analysis of monitoring of shipping in the Bosphorus
Strait states that Admiral Grigorovich and Admiral Makarov frigates sailed
for Syria, but three other warships have followed unannounced. One is the Orsk,
a landing ship capable of carrying 20 tanks, 50 trucks or 45 armored personnel carriers
and up to 400 troops and the others are the Novocherkassk and the Caesar Kunikov
which are also landing ships that can carry over 300 troops, tanks and armor.
According to the Russian Newspaper, Novaya Gazeta Turkish are on the verge of closing
the Bosphorus for Russian Battleships if there are future resupply of weapons and ammunition
for the Syrian Kurdish fighters. If the borders are closed, It will be a diplomatic condition
between Russia and Turkey hence there are two Russian military bases at Tartus and Khmeimim
which are getting highly affected due to low reinforcements of necessary logistics.
In short, It is a strait that keeps countries in peace or war, a strait that decides the rise
and fall of the economy. The importance of the Bosphorus strait never fades away.
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