A merchant ship has sunk following drone strikes targeting two separate vessels off the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria, according to Prime Minister Rumen Radev. The prime minister pointed toward suspected Russian involvement in the incidents and announced that he had called in Moscow's ambassador to address the matter.
One of the affected vessels sank approximately 17 nautical miles east of Krapets, with a single crew member successfully rescued from the water. The second ship, which is Ukrainian-owned, was struck by three drones roughly 18 nautical miles from the town of Byala, though all 15 members of its crew managed to escape safely.
These maritime drone strikes follow similar incidents from the previous week when two other commercial ships were targeted by aerial and sea drones within Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone. One of those vessels, the Alfa Watan, went down with all 10 crew members presumed dead.
Following an emergency meeting, Radev stated that he had summoned Russian envoy Eleonora Mitrofanova. He acknowledged that while definitive proof pointing to either side was lacking, logical deductions suggested the situation primarily served the interests of the Russian Federation.
As Bulgaria is a member of NATO, the prime minister noted plans to speak directly with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte regarding the security situation. Previously, Radev requested technical assistance from both the European Union and NATO to investigate earlier maritime incidents, noting at the time that the responsible parties remained unclear.
Ukraine has openly accused Russia of carrying out the latest drone strikes in the region. Meanwhile, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the Black Sea as transforming into an additional front for escalation in the ongoing conflict, labeling the developments unacceptable.
The Russian military has not issued any public statements concerning the attacks. Moscow has recently ramped up strikes against vessels in the western Black Sea sector, maintaining that it focuses on transports carrying weapons and dual-use materials to Ukrainian ports, whereas Kyiv and European allies maintain that civilian and grain-carrying merchant ships are being targeted.