Black Sea off Bulgaria: two ships hit by drones, 11 sailors missing

What happened

Overnight into 13 October drones hit two cargo ships off Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast, Reuters reported. The Guinea-Bissau-flagged HS Dignity sank near the village of Krapets close to the Romanian border: five crew were rescued and 11 remain missing. Bulgarian President Iliana Iotova confirmed the ship’s name and that search-and-rescue was ongoing.

A second vessel, the Malta-flagged Chelsea-3, was hit by three drones. All 15 crew — seven Ukrainians and eight Azerbaijanis — were rescued with no serious injuries, Bulgarian officials said.

Sofia, Kyiv and Brussels react

Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev called the attack “absolutely unacceptable” near Bulgarian waters and said its outcome “benefits the Russian Federation”, stopping short of a direct accusation. Sofia summoned Russia’s ambassador. After the meeting, Ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova said she had no Defence Ministry information about attacks on merchant ships and did not rule out a “provocation by a third party”.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote that the Black Sea had become “another front of escalation of the Russian war in Ukraine” and that those responsible should be held accountable. Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the strike again showed Moscow’s deliberate disregard for civilian lives and maritime security; the Black Sea is “a lifeline for global food security”.

Radev spoke by phone with von der Leyen and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte about strengthening maritime and airspace surveillance. Rutte said NATO would keep adjusting its eastern-flank presence “as needed”.

Context

This was not the first incident in a week: earlier drone strikes in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone also hit civilian ships with fatalities. Russia has been bombing Ukraine’s Black Sea ports, pushing exports toward Danube ports and shipping lanes along the coasts of NATO members Bulgaria and Romania. Ukraine, for its part, has targeted Russian grain ships in other parts of the sea.

Why it matters

Attacks on merchant shipping near NATO waters turn the grain corridor into a battlefield and raise risks for Alliance members. Eleven missing sailors are the human cost of an escalation that Kyiv and the EU explicitly link to Russia’s war.