Turkish Straits

The Turkish Straits (Turkish: lang-tr|Türk Boğazları) are two internationally significant waterways. The straits create a series of international passages that connect the Aegean Sea and Mediterranean Sea to the Black Sea. They consist of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus. The straits are at opposite ends of the Sea of Marmara. The straits and the Sea of Marmara are part of the sovereign sea territory of Turkey. Since 1936, however, they have been governed in accordance with the Montreux Convention.

Located on the western side of the peninsular of Anatolia (or Asia Minor), the Turkish Straits are conventionally considered the boundary between the continents of Europe and Asia, as well as the dividing line between Turkey in Europe and Asian Turkey. Owing to their strategic importance in international commerce, politics, and warfare, the Turkish Straits have played a significant role in European and world history. In The Great War Russia had the conquest of the Straits as one of their war aims.