Turkey planning to open a new military base in the Black Sea coast

The planned military base will be the second on the country’s Black Sea coast.

Turkey aims to monitor developments in the Black Sea more closely after last year's Russia-Georgia conflict, by establishing a new military base 600 kilometers east of the base at the Karadeniz Eregli district in the northern province of Zonguldak, the report said without citing any source.

Hurriyet said the Turkish military confirmed that works are underway in Trabzon for the planning of a logistics base. The construction of the base will start with routine appointments in summer, the report added.

The story came weeks after media reports suggested that the U.S. may look at setting up a military base in Trabzon as an alternative to the Manas base in Kyrgyzstan which is due to close later this year. 

The Turkish army said last month that the U.S. has not knocked on the country's door regarding the establishment of a base on the Black Sea coast after the closure decision of the Kyrgyzstan base that is key for Afghanistan operations.