Bulgarian PM says drone attack on 2 commercial vessels is ‘blatant violation of international law’
Authorities evacuated 18 crew members and flew two severely injured sailors to hospital as they monitor for possible oil spills and marine pollution.
- On Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan warned that intensifying attacks in the Black Sea seriously impact navigational safety and urged the international community to prevent the region from becoming a new conflict front.
- Turkey, a NATO member, has repeatedly called for a halt to attacks on commercial ships since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, citing risks to Turkish-flagged and Turkish-owned vessels after the Black Sea Grain Initiative collapsed.
- Both Russia and Ukraine are increasing attacks to gain military superiority before winter, Fidan said, which risks disrupting global grain shipments and creating food supply problems for international markets.
- Ankara is awaiting responses from Russia and Ukraine to a proposal aimed at stopping attacks on commercial ships and ensuring safe grain transport from the region.
- Preventing the war from spreading further into the Black Sea remains a priority for Turkey, which has worked since 2022 to maintain regional stability through diplomatic efforts and maritime conventions.
354 Articles
354 Articles
Black sea and black ops: How exposed is Europe to Ukraine war spillover?
The story’s as underreported as it is consequential for the entire planet: Three Turkish-owned cargo ships out of Ukraine hit in EU waters by suspected Russian drones. One, the Togo-flagged Alfa Watan sinking Tuesday off Bulgaria. Ten Egyptian and Syrian crew missing. For its part, Ukraine’s been hitting Russian tankers in the Black Sea... this with no sign of a return to a UN-brokered deal to allow oil, grain and fertilizer ships to pass.
The Black Sea's Quiet Shipping War Reaches NATO Waters
Seventy Miles Off Byala At about 3am on 6 October, aerial and sea drones struck two Turkish-owned cargo ships some 70 nautical miles off the Bulgarian coast. The Togo-flagged Alfa Watan sank on the spot. Its ten crew are unaccounted for, and the search has been called off. The day before, a grain carrier sank […]
The safety of navigation in the Black Sea is an important factor in ensuring world food security, the need to prevent the Ukrainian crisis from influencing these maritime routes, said Turkish Ministry Chief Hakan Fidan on Thursday. "We must prevent the Black Sea from becoming a new front of the conflict," quoted Turkiye Today as his words from a press conference with Anita Orban, Head of the Hungarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Syria calls for independent probe into sinking of ship in Black Sea
Syria has urgently requested an independent investigation following the troubling sinking of the cargo vessel Alfa Watan. The vessel, targeted in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, resulted in the disappearance of its ten crew members, comprised of nine Syrians and one Egyptian. Syrian officials are questioning the abrupt cessation of search and rescue operations without clarity on the crew's fate.
Can Bulgaria be a safe gateway for Asian imports to the EU?
The EU wants more trade via the Middle Corridor, which could bring big benefits for Bulgaria. But Tuesday's drone attacks on commercial ships off the Bulgarian coast are a stark reminder of the security risks involved.
Recent drone attacks on merchant ships in the Black Sea have highlighted the weaknesses of European defense in one of the continent's most sensitive areas. Within days, drones have damaged and sunk merchant ships, caused fires and claimed the lives of people off the coast of Romania and Bulgaria. The incidents have raised the question of how capable the European Union is of protecting maritime traffic and critical infrastructure in the region, t…
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