All these problems were discussed, first and foremost, by border-control experts from Bulgaria, Georgia, Russia, Romania, Turkey and Ukraine in Odessa, Ukraine.
Forum participants noted the work of Bulgaria's Burgas-based coordinating center, which undertakes to collect, sum up and disseminate information about the movement of suspicious-looking ships among littoral countries, the press release goes on to say.
This category includes those specific ships, which have violated international-law norms at least once. More than 140 different national ships are already included in the list, Alexander Letov, deputy Russian-delegation chief, said, the press release notes.
Moreover, Russia and Ukraine have informed their colleagues about the establishment of national information-and-coordination centers.
Experts also praised Turkey's efforts to organize and hold a search-and-rescue exercise in the Black Sea's western sector this past June; that exercise involved Bulgarian, Romanian, Ukrainian and Turkish ships.
The forum also analyzed specific accords, which had been reached during the fourth annual conference of regional border-control agencies' chiefs in fall 2003, also discussing and endorsing the agenda of a regular conference of regional border-control officers.
Russia is to host the fifth annual conference of directors of regional border-control departments already this October; the conference is to take place in one of the Krasnodar territory's Black Sea cities, the press release notes in conclusion.
