Drone Strike Sinks Ukrainian Vessel Off Bulgaria, Premier Summons Russian Ambassador
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said he suspected Russia and summoned the Russian ambassador after drone attacks on two merchant ships in the Black Sea.
Yulduz Salimov3 min read
Drones attacked two merchant ships off the coast of Bulgaria in the Black Sea, and one of them sank. Prime Minister Rumen Radev said he had summoned the Russian ambassador because he suspects Russia of involvement.
According to him, one of the vessels sank 17 nautical miles (31 km) east of Krapets, and one crew member was rescued. The other ship, which belongs to Ukraine, was hit by three drones 18 nautical miles from the city of Byala, and all 15 crew members were rescued.
Bulgaria's Statements
Radev convened an emergency meeting on Tuesday and said he had summoned Russian ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova. According to him, there is no convincing evidence of guilt on either side, but “logic suggests that the result benefits the Russian Federation.”
Radev named one of the damaged vessels as the Chelsea 3, sailing under the flag of Malta and registered in the Ukrainian city of Odesa, noting that five members of its crew are being treated for minor injuries. He did not provide further details about the sunken vessel.
Another attack on merchant ships in the immediate vicinity of Bulgarian territorial waters is absolutely unacceptable.
Bulgaria is a NATO member, and the prime minister said he would soon speak with Secretary General Mark Rutte. Radev previously asked NATO and the EU for technical assistance in investigating the October 6 attacks, saying it was unclear whether Russia or Ukraine was behind them. Radev came to power in the summer and has since rejected suggestions that he is “pro-Russian.”
Reaction in Kyiv and Brussels
Ukraine directly accused Russia of the latest attacks. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Tuesday that the Black Sea is becoming “another front of escalation of Russia's war in Ukraine” and called this unacceptable.
Russia's latest attack on commercial ships close to Bulgarian territorial waters once again demonstrates Moscow's deliberate disregard for the lives of civilians and maritime safety in the Black Sea. The Black Sea is a lifeline for global food security. Russia is attacking it to turn hunger into a weapon and hold the world hostage. This must be met with force.
Russia's Ministry of Defense has not publicly commented on the matter. Moscow says it strikes ships delivering weapons and dual-use cargo to Ukrainian ports. Kyiv and its European allies say the attacks target merchant ships carrying grain and other civilian cargo. Turkey has called on both countries to stop attacks in the Black Sea.
A week earlier, in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, sea and aerial drones struck two more commercial ships. One of them, the Alfa Watan, sank, and all 10 crew members, including nine Syrian citizens, are presumed dead. On the same day that the two ships were attacked off the coast of Bulgaria, Ukraine struck an oil tanker in the Russian Black Sea port of Sochi.
Russia and Ukraine are major grain exporters. Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and Moscow currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory.
Source: bbc.co.uk
