Russia is suspected of being behind a recent wave of attacks targeting commercial vessels in the Black Sea.
Euronews has obtained images of the Liberian-flagged vessel targeted by sea drones off Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast on 28 October.
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The incident marked the fifth drone attack recorded in the NATO country’s exclusive economic zone last month.
The Greek-managed Contship Jet tanker was travelling from Israel’s port of Haifa to Constanța in Romania when it was struck by three maritime drones.
All 18 crew members - 14 Filipinos and four Ukrainians - were rescued by Bulgarian naval and border police vessels and taken to the port city of Varna for medical checks.
Bulgaria's Military District Prosecutor's Office announced it had opened a preliminary investigation into the attack the next day. Russia is suspected of being behind a recent wave of attacks targeting commercial vessels in the Black Sea.
Some of the containers on board were carrying lithium-ion batteries, flammable liquids, gases and other hazardous materials, the maritime.bg site reported. Navy teams reported no signs of pollution after taking samples from several locations in Bulgarian territorial waters.
The incident came as defence ministers from Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey met in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia, to discuss security in the Black Sea region.
In a statement after the talks, the three NATO countries strongly condemned the strikes on vessels in the Black Sea and called for an “immediate cessation of attacks that threaten commercial ships, maritime infrastructure and the safety of maritime activities.”
They also agreed on stronger intelligence sharing, early warning capabilities and coordination in the region.
A recent wave of such incidents off the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria has led some alliance members to wonder if Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking to test their support for Ukraine as it continues to fight against Moscow’s full-scale invasion.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev told his country's parliament earlier this month that “the logic points in that direction … The problem is that we cannot prove it.”
In response to the attacks, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said on 15 October in a post on X that the alliance had "strengthened" its "posture along the eastern flank including with increasing counter-drone capabilities."