NATO is expanding Black Sea surveillance and forensic support after attacks on commercial ships near Bulgaria and Romania, while Bulgarian authorities say examinations to identify those responsible remain underway.
NATO spokesperson Allison Hart announced the additional support on Oct. 20 after alliance ambassadors discussed Black Sea security. Al Jazeera reported that Col. Martin O’Donnell, a spokesman for Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE), said allies had sent or would send maritime patrol aircraft, radar systems, drones, intelligence personnel and explosive exploitation teams. NATO has not disclosed asset counts, operating locations or a deployment schedule, and its announcement did not describe an escort mission for commercial ships.
On Wednesday, Oct. 28, Bulgaria’s Defense Ministry said a surface drone struck the Liberian-flagged container ship Contship Jet, with three impacts observed. All 18 crew members were rescued. The local maritime administration later said the ship sank, the Associated Press (AP) reported.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said allied patrol aircraft were coordinating with Bulgarian command centers and exchanging information. Separately, he said a French patrol aircraft spotted drones roughly half an hour before the strike and relayed their route, which he said gave the crew time to evacuate. Bulgarian authorities say expert examinations are underway. “I expect us finally to have an answer and clear evidence of who is carrying out these attacks,” Radev said.
Romania’s Interior Ministry reported that a Comoros-flagged commercial vessel caught fire and capsized on Oct. 23 about 13 nautical miles east of Constanța, outside Romanian territorial waters. The ministry reported that nine of the 13 people aboard were rescued, one died and three were missing. AP identified the vessel as the Khoryv and reported that Romanian President Nicușor Dan described the incident as a drone attack linked to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
Ambrey Analytics said three merchant vessels were struck within 24 hours on Oct. 5-6 in the Romanian and Bulgarian exclusive economic zones; two sank. The firm assessed Russian forces were highly likely responsible and that the vessels were highly likely targeted because of links to Ukrainian grain exports. That assessment concerns those earlier incidents and does not establish who carried out the later attacks.
Ukraine’s Cabinet says attacks on civilian shipping and port infrastructure have forced exporters to reroute cargo and lengthened delivery times. Bulgarian authorities have not announced when their examinations will conclude.
