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The Compass: On The Black Sea: On the Black Sea: The Voyage Begins

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On the Black Sea: The Voyage Begins

19/07/2017 GMT

On The Black Sea

BBC World Service - The Compass, On The Black Sea, On the Black Sea: The Voyage Begins

A journey around the Black Sea, where Russian warships sail for Syria and Nato watches

Tim Whewell sets out from Istanbul, the great port that holds the keys to the Black Sea, sailing north through the Bosphorus straits towards Ukraine.

A voyage across a mysterious sea where empires have clashed for centuries and tensions are rising again. By ferry, rowing-boat, horse-drawn wagon, the BBC World Service travels over, around, and under the Black Sea, to discover its ancient and modern secrets. As Russia and Nato build up their naval power in the region, presenter Tim Whewell meets the Istanbul ship-spotter who helped alert the world to the scale of the Kremlin’s military involvement in Syria. Tim embarks on his journey over the sea to Odessa in Ukraine. It is a city in love with the sea. But its character is beginning to change.

Producer: Monica Whitlock

(Photo: Istanbul panorama Credit: Tony Jolliffe/BBC

The Compass: On The Black Sea

Tim Whewell journeys around a region of strategic importance where Russia meets Turkey.

Tim Whewell journeys around the Black Sea - a region of great strategic importance where Russia meets Turkey.

Tim Whewell journeys around the Black Sea - a region of great strategic importance where Russia meets Turkey.

Photo: Fishing in Batumi, Georgia Credit: Monica Whitlock

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