At least seven commercial vessels have been hit by drone strikes in the western Black Sea in about ten days near the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria, in a sharp escalation against shipping on a vital trade route, according to AP and Reuters reporting.
Reuters reported that at least 23 sailors were lost from strikes on at least five cargo vessels near the two NATO members' coasts over the past ten days. Those strikes took place just outside NATO territorial waters.
In the latest incident, two chemical tankers caught fire overnight near the mouth of the Danube's Sulina Canal. Romanian officials said eight of the 12 crew aboard the San Marino-flagged tanker Wine Trader were missing and four were safe. All crew aboard the second vessel, the Comoros-flagged tanker Yara J, were safe. The Wine Trader was hit just outside Romanian waters; the Yara J was inside them.
Earlier strikes included the sinking of a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying corn off Romania on 5 October, in which two people died, and the sinking of vessels off Bulgaria, with crew missing. A senior Romanian official said drones had hit the latest two tankers but declined to say whether Russia was responsible. A NATO military source told Reuters the drones were of Russian origin. Moscow said two ships loaded with military cargo heading for the Ukrainian port of Odesa had been hit, without naming the vessels. Romania's naval authority said the Wine Trader was not carrying cargo.
The Black Sea is a key route for Ukrainian agricultural exports and global grain trade. Reuters reported that increasing attacks on Black Sea shipping have threatened to cause a global food crisis, as both Russia and Ukraine are major grain exporters. The attacks have also raised questions about insurance costs and the security of shipping close to NATO shores.