Two commercial vessels were struck by Russian drones in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea early on Tuesday, with one ship sinking and the crew of the other being rescued.
The attacks took place at around 3am local time, approximately 80 nautical miles (148 kilometres) off the Bulgarian coast.
The vessels were the Togo-flagged Alfa Watan IMO (7510884) and the Palau-flagged Able (IMO: 9001136). The Alfa Watan suffered critical structural damage and sank at the scene, while the Able caught fire following the attack. All 18 crew members aboard the Able were evacuated, although two sailors suffered serious injuries and were taken to hospital in Varna. The fate of the crew aboard the sunken Alfa Watan was initially unknown, prompting a search-and-rescue operation.
The vessels were travelling in the western Black Sea. The attacks also come just one day after a separate incident off Romania in which a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying corn caught fire and sank, with two people killed and 11 crew members rescued.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Radev condemned Tuesday’s attacks, describing them as an “unacceptable attack” and a blatant violation of international and maritime law.
He warned that the continuing war in Ukraine risked expanding geographically and increasing the possibility of a wider conflict.
“What is happening is seriously disrupting shipping in the Black Sea, driving up insurance costs even further and making shipping extremely difficult,” Radev said.
This is the first Russian attack on commercial shipping within Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone. However, this is not the first time Russia has struck a vessel in the maritime zone of a NATO member in the Black Sea.
On 27 August, the Dominican Republic-flagged cargo vessel Progress IV was hit by a drone while sailing in Romania’s Exclusive Economic Zone, approximately 15 nautical miles off Sfântu Gheorghe. The vessel later sank, although all 12 crew members were rescued.
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