In brief
A merchant vessel sank after a drone strike, while a second ship was hit but its crew rescued. Prime Minister Rumen Radev suspects Russia was behind the attacks and has called its ambassador to discuss the incident. The strikes come a week after similar attacks that claimed the lives of ten crew members on another vessel. Moscow has not commented, but NATO and the EU have offered technical help to investigate.
Drones hit two merchant ships off Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast, sinking one and wounding crews on the other.
The first vessel went down 17 nautical miles east of Krapets after a drone strike. Five crew members were injured but were later treated in an ambulance. The second, a Ukrainian‑owned ship, was hit by three drones 18 nautical miles from Byala; all 15 crew were rescued without major injuries.
Prime Minister Rumen Radev said he suspected Russia was behind the attacks and has summoned the Russian ambassador to express Bulgaria’s displeasure. He described the incidents as "absolutely unacceptable" and called for a joint investigation with NATO and the EU.
These strikes follow two earlier drone‑and‑sea attacks on commercial vessels in Bulgarian waters, the most recent of which sank the ship "Alfa Watan" and claimed ten lives, including nine Syrians.
The attacks have drawn condemnation from Ukraine, which accuses Russia of deliberately targeting civilian maritime traffic, and from the European Commission, which warns the Black Sea could become a new front of escalation. Russia has denied the accusations and has not released any official statement on the incidents.
