A ship has sunk and another has been damaged in a drone attack off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, a European holiday destination popular with British tourists. Two vessels were struck by drones in the early hours of Tuesday, triggering emergency rescue operations in the second such incident in the space of a week.
Attack on Chelsea 3
The Ukrainian-owned Chelsea 3, sailing under the Maltese flag, was hit by three drones at around 1.30am when it was around 18 nautical miles (33km) off the Bulgarian coast, Prime Minister Rumen Radev said. Its crew of seven Ukrainians and eight Azerbaijanis were rescued, with five receiving medical assistance. None was seriously injured.
The vessel's crew reported that its deck and hull had been struck by three aerial drones. A distress call was received at 01:30 from the vessel, which was registered in Odesa.
Second vessel sunk
A second ship, identified in Bulgarian reports as the Azov Concord, was also hit and sank around 17 nautical miles (31km) east of Krapets, close to Bulgaria's maritime border with Romania. The general cargo vessel had reportedly left Brăila in Romania on October 10 and was travelling towards Izmir in Turkey, where it was due to arrive on October 14.
Mr Radev initially said one crew member from the sunken vessel had been rescued. Varna regional governor Mario Smrkov later said at least four crew members had reached life rafts, with a civilian vessel assisting the rescue operation.
Political response
The latest attacks prompted an emergency meeting of Bulgaria's Security Council on Tuesday. Mr Radev condemned the incident, saying: "This is absolutely unacceptable - another attack in the immediate vicinity of Bulgarian territorial waters." He added: "I am due to speak with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte."
Bulgaria is seeking assistance from NATO and the European Union following the attacks. Authorities have not established who was responsible for the drone strikes. Mr Radev said there was no clear evidence over who carried out the attack but added that "the outcome benefits the Russian Federation". He also said he would summon Russia's ambassador to Bulgaria, Eleonora Mitrofanova, over the incident.
Russia did not immediately comment on Tuesday's attack. Bulgaria does not share a border with either Russia or Ukraine, but as a NATO member it occupies a strategically important position on the Black Sea, where both countries have major ports.
Previous incidents
The latest strikes come 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 in that attack, while a Bulgarian ferry evacuated the 18-member crew from a Palau-flagged vessel.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine's military had not carried out any operations near the locations of last week's drone strikes and pointed the finger at Russia. The latest incident also follows a drone attack on a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying corn in the Black Sea off neighbouring Romania. The vessel caught fire following the attack and later sank. Two people died and 11 crew members were rescued, according to Romanian authorities.
