Crew Missing After Drone Attack Sinks Ship Off Bulgaria's Coast
Two vessels were struck in the Black Sea; Bulgarian Prime Minister calls attack a gross violation of international law.
The crew of a merchant ship remains missing after the vessel sank in the Black Sea off the coast of Bulgaria on Tuesday, following a drone strike that Prime Minister Rumen Radev condemned as a gross violation of international law. The attack, involving both air and sea drones, occurred approximately 70 miles off the town of Byala. It is unclear who carried out the strike, but concerns are rising about potential hybrid attacks by Russia amid its ongoing war in Ukraine.
This incident appears to be the first such attack in Bulgarian waters, according to shipping sources. Prime Minister Radev stated that two ships were targeted: a vessel carrying grain, whose crew was rescued with two injured, and a Togo-flagged ship that sank. The cargo of the sunken vessel was not disclosed, and the number of individuals on board is unknown.
The attacks took place about 140 nautical miles from the Ukrainian coast. A search operation has been initiated for the missing crew members and to assess any environmental threats. While Radev did not attribute the attack to any specific entity, he referenced Russia's war in Ukraine, warning that failure to end the conflict could lead to its expansion and an increased risk of global conflict. He described the targeting of civilian vessels at sea as "absolutely unacceptable."
A maritime security source suggested that initial assessments indicated a likely Russian attack. Russia has not yet commented on the incident.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated that attacks on civilian shipping are unacceptable, noting that lives have already been lost at sea. Hungarian Prime Minister Peter Magyar expressed solidarity with Bulgaria via X.
Maritime risk management group Vanguard identified the targeted vessels as the Togo-flagged general cargo vessel ALFA WATAN and the Palau-flagged general cargo vessel ABLE. Both ships issued distress signals after being struck by drones within Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone.
This event follows a recent incident where two people died in a ship fire in the Black Sea outside Romanian territorial waters. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky blamed Russian drones for that incident, though Russian authorities offered no immediate comment.
Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, European nations have reported numerous instances of Russian drones breaching their airspace and mines drifting in the Black Sea, impacting trade and energy routes.