Two vessels sink after drone attacks near Bulgaria and Romania — Deutsche Welle
Two cargo vessels sank in the Black Sea near Bulgaria and Romania following drone attacks, while another was damaged. According to Deutsche Welle, drones struck Alfa Watan and Able in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone on October 6.
Alfa Watan sank, and its crew has still not been found. Bulgaria ended its search-and-rescue operation on Wednesday morning. The crew of the damaged Able was rescued by a Bulgarian vessel passing nearby, while two sailors were taken to a military hospital in Varna.
The previous day, October 5, the cargo vessel Royad Mammadov sank off the coast of Romania after a drone strike. Two members of its crew were killed in the incident.
Bulgaria’s reaction
The Bulgarian government called the attack on the two vessels an unacceptable violation of international law, but did not call on Russia, the aggressor state, to stop its war against Ukraine. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said that the vessels’ cargo and direction of travel logically provide grounds for suggesting Russian involvement, but there is no concrete evidence.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the Ukrainian military had assured Bulgaria of its non-involvement in the attack and accused Russia. At the same time, Radev denied that such a conversation had taken place. One of the surviving Able crew members also suggested that Russia could have carried out the strike, as the vessel was transporting Ukrainian grain.
Risks to shipping
Global security expert Ruslan Trad stressed that the sailor’s words are an eyewitness hypothesis, not evidence. In his view, the motive points to Russia, which systematically threatens shipping to Ukrainian ports, but it is correct to speak only of probable, not proven, Russian responsibility.
Trad believes that these incidents call into question the safety of the western part of the Black Sea. He predicts increased maritime monitoring, mine-countermeasure capabilities, coordination among coast guard services, and intelligence sharing among allies. Among the possible consequences, he cited stricter route recommendations, rising insurance costs, and difficulties in recruiting crews.
