Ukrainian attempt to sabotage Romania's NATO accession

The Ukrainian authorities filed a complaint against Romania to Brussels and Washington, accusing it of territorial claims and procrastination of delimiting the continental plateau and the exclusive economic area by the Black Sea. Ukraine’s interventions, however, did not prompt any response from the North-Atlantic Alliance, with the border issue deemed as Romania’s and Ukraine’s business alone by the Western countries, sources in Brussels say.
The two countries are now transacting over the border on the Danube (the Chilia Channel) and the division of the continental plateau of the Black Sea, supposed to contain important petroleum deposits. Ukraine wants to draw a line starting from the south of the Insula Serpilor (Snakes Island) and stopping in the middle of the Black Sea, therefore taking control over the stretch of water behind the line. The territory under litigation is of about 13,000 square leagues (more than 20,000 square kilometres). The Romanian party has come up with various compromise options in the course of time, which take into account the distance between the Romanian Coast and Ukraine’s East Coast (over the Black Sea). All the proposals met with refusal by the other party. The issue of this border has a political stake attached to it, as well, speculated on by the public speech of Kiev. “Romanians want Ukrainian land” has become a recurring headline in the nationalist papers published in the capital city of the neighbouring country. The accusations, however, are referring to a border that still has to be set by the two parties.
The essential thing here is how much of the continental plateau of the Black Sea can Ukraine claim as a result of its possession of the island. The Ukrainians insist the Insula Serpilor is inhabited, therefore has the same legal power as any portion of the mainland. In other words, they claim the possession of the island gives them the right to say this is where Ukraine ends, therefore they are entitled to the Black Sea territory starting south of that island. The Romanians accept Ukraine as sovereign of the Insula Serpilor, yet they insist the island is just a lump of the continental plateau, uninhabited since time immemorial, so that it does not fit into the definition of an island in the treaties. Subsequently, Ukraine would not have so many rights over the southern continental plateau. The Romanian solution, that is negotiations to draw a compromise border was refused by the Ukrainian party, which threatened to make it difficult for Romania to get into the NATO, unless it accepts the Kiev-dictated boundary. This (quasi) blackmail was not tolerated by Romanian negotiators and failed to materialise. “All through the bilateral Romanian-Ukrainian dialogue between Presidents, Premiers and Foreign Ministers, as well as throughout the 13 rounds of talks carried so far, the determination of the Romanian party to observe the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, including the boundary between the two states has been clearly reiterated,” the Romanian Foreign Ministry specifies.
Still, Romania has rather little room to manoeuvre, as a treaty dating back to 1997 legitimises Ukrainian property of the island, inherited from the former USSR. The same treaty limits Romanian ways to turn to the court in Hague, as well. Even so, Bucharest negotiators are still hoping an agreement can be reached to settle this issue. All the more so, since this difference is potentially damaging to both countries, as no oil company will start drilling this territory if under litigation. The Ukrainians, however, have performed exploration in this territory, probably intending to prove they are in charge over there. Still, $2 million’s worth of exploration later, the works are now on hold. At the moment, the island hosts several radar stations with the necessary staff, as well as a phone booth, deliberately placed there to substantiate the Ukrainian’s party claims, which maintains the island is inhabited.