ABSTRACT
Ukraine's ability to project maritime power in the Black Sea and beyond has also been damaged by the lack of investment in its navy. The failure of the government to fund effectively military transformation has had a catastrophic effect on the assets and capabilities available to the Ukrainian Navy to protect its maritime domain and engage in maritime security operations in the Black Sea and beyond. As well as lacking effective capabilities to operate in the maritime domain, the extension of the Russian Black Sea Fleet (BSF) lease of key ports in Sevastopol also reinforced practical limitations on Ukraine's maritime power. The Russian BSF has demonstrated not only its capacity but its willingness to use maritime power to achieve political goals in the Black Sea. The decline in the quantitative and qualitative foundations of Ukraine's maritime power is even more significant given recent changes in Kyiv's geostrategic environment.
