To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the implications for the European security and defence policy of the EU’s border on the Black Sea following the accession of Romania and Bulgaria. (191064)

The EU considers Black sea issues through the general policy framework provided by the Black Sea Synergy Initiative. This does not include implications of an EU border on the Black Sea for European Security and Defence Policy. The EU would consider defence aspects only in the context of specific developments in the region that might require a potential EU crisis management intervention, which would be planned and conducted through the European Security and Defence Policy.