Istanbul Istanbul Istanbul (, or or ; ), historically known as Byzantium and before 1924 as Constantinople, is the most populous city in Turkey and the country's economic, cultural, and historic center. Istanbul is a transcontinental city in Eurasia, straddling the Bosporus strait (which separates Europe and Asia) between the Sea of Marmara and the Black Sea. Its commercial and historical center lies on the European side and about a third of its population lives on the Asian side. The city is the administrative center of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (coterminous with Istanbul Province), both hosting a population of around 15
Piracy in the Strait of Malacca 325 reported pirate attacks worldwide in 2004; nine occurred in Malaysian waters, eight in Singaporean waters, and 93 in Indonesian waters. With Indonesia making it clear that it is not adequately equipped to patrol the Strait, the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard finally agreed to join the multinational piracy patrol in the Strait of Malacca in 2006. India is also building a UAV-patrol base in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to monitor the Andaman Sea adjacent to the Strait of Malacca. Due to co-operation between these countries, and to some extent with Thailand, piracy in the region has almost