The North Sea – Rhine – Main – Danube – Black Sea waterway system links 16 states and facilitates transport via 9 large rivers which make up the 7th European waterway corridor. This corridor simplifies transport between Western Europe and the South Danube states and between the North Sea and the Black Sea, through to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Suez Canal. At the same time, the 7th corridor links the inner waterways of Northwestern Europe made up of the Seine, Rhine, Ens, Elba and the Oder which flow into the North Sea.
This waterway system is very important both economically and militarily given the current situation in the Black Sea region.
The economic significance is given by the fact that this system can sustain high capacity international goods trading by creating an alternative to transit through the Russian Federation which is currently being sanctioned by the European and Euroatlantic communities.
The military importance of this waterway system is due to its strategic alignment in the Black Sea region, close to the military bases of Crimea. The system is currently an important part of the action plans of NATO and its neighbouring states.