Drones attacked two ships off the coast of Bulgaria, one of them Ukrainian, whose crew was rescued

As reported by Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev, for the second time in a week, cargo ships have been attacked by unknown drones off the country's coast, Reuters writes.

Thus, on the night of October 13, approximately 33 km off the coast of Bulgaria, three drones attacked the Odessa-registered vessel Chelsea 3, registered under the Maltese flag, which was sailing from Turkey to Romania. 15 crew members (seven Ukrainians and eight Azerbaijanis) were rescued from the damaged vessel and provided with the necessary medical assistance.

That same night, another merchant ship, the Azov Concord, was attacked and sunk 31 km off the coast of Bulgaria, from which only one crew member was rescued.

In a televised speech, Radev said that "new attacks near Bulgaria's territorial waters are unacceptable," so he plans to discuss the situation with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

Bulgaria currently has no evidence of who carried out the attacks on the ships, but their outcome is "obviously beneficial to the Russian Federation." The authorities plan to summon the Russian ambassador in connection with the incident.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga said that merchant ships near the territorial waters of Bulgaria were attacked by the Russian Federation, which once again demonstrates its disregard for the safety of navigation in the Black Sea and the lives of civilians. The Minister called on international partners to increase pressure on the Russian Federation, impose tougher sanctions, and take effective measures to protect shipping.

Bulgaria, a NATO member, does not share a border with either Ukraine or the Russian Federation, but it occupies a strategic position in the Black Sea region, where the ports of both countries are located. The increase in the number of Russian hybrid attacks using UAVs complicates the situation in the region.

Recall that on October 5, the ship Royad Mammadov, which was transporting corn from Izmail to Italy, was attacked by Russian drones in the Black Sea near the territorial waters of Romania, caught fire and sank. At that time, two crew members and 11 others were rescued.

Two more merchant ships were attacked on October 6 in the Bulgarian economic zone 130 km from the coast. One of them, the ALFA WATAN, sank, while the other, the ABLE (carrying Ukrainian cargo), caught fire, but its 18 crew members were evacuated.

The President of Ukraine said that vessels near Bulgaria were attacked by Russian naval and aerial drones as Russia tries to make the western part of the Black Sea unsuitable for navigation.