Drones hit 2 ships off Bulgaria, sinking 1 and triggering Black Sea search for 11

Drones struck two ships in the Black Sea off Bulgaria on Tuesday, sinking one and prompting emergency rescue operations, Prime Minister Rumen Radev said.

Rescuers evacuated all 15 crew members from one ship, the Maltese-flagged Chelsea 3, with five receiving treatment for minor injuries, Radev said in a video posted to social media.

The crew, which included seven Ukrainian citizens and eight Azerbaijani citizens, reported the ship’s deck and hull were hit by three aerial drones.

One crew member from the sunken vessel was rescued, Radev added, without providing details about the others aboard. The strikes on the two ships occurred 20 miles and 21 miles (32 and 34 kilometres) from the Bulgarian coast.

During an emergency meeting of Bulgaria’s Security Council on Tuesday, Radev called the attacks “absolutely unacceptable” and said Bulgaria was seeking Nato and European Union assistance.

While authorities do not possess clear evidence on who was responsible for the drone attacks, “logic, as I have already stated, indicates that the result is in favour of the Russian Federation”, Radev said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha in a post on social media on Tuesday blamed Russia for the attacks.

“Russia’s latest attack on commercial vessels near Bulgaria’s territorial waters, which injured Ukrainian and Azerbaijani citizens, once again demonstrates Moscow’s deliberate disregard for civilian lives and maritime security in the Black Sea,” Sybiha wrote.

He said that Ukraine was urging its partners to step up pressure on Russia, strengthen sanctions and take decisive action to hold it accountable and protect freedom of navigation.

“The Black Sea is a lifeline for global food security. Russia is attacking it to weaponise hunger and hold the world hostage. This must be met with strength,” Sybiha wrote.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen “strongly condemned” the drone incidents and said the Black Sea “has become another front of escalation” in Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“This is unacceptable. I strongly condemn the drone attacks on merchant ships near Bulgaria’s coast. Putting the lives of the crew in grave danger and threatening security in the Black Sea,” she said in a post on social media.

“We stand with Bulgaria and thank its rescuers for their swift response. Those responsible should be held accountable.”

The attacks came exactly a week after sea and aerial drones attacked two other commercial vessels in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea. A Togo-flagged ship sank, while a Bulgarian ferry evacuated the 18-member crew of a Pulau-flagged vessel.

Ukraine’s military did not conduct any operations near the locations of last week’s drone strikes, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who pointed the finger at Russia.

A day earlier, a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying corn caught fire following a drone attack and later sank in the Black Sea off the coast of Romania. Two people died and 11 crew members were rescued, Romanian authorities said.

Russia did not immediately comment on Tuesday’s incident.

Radev said he would summon the Russian ambassador to Bulgaria, Eleonora Mitrofanova, for a conversation on Tuesday.