The commercial vessel “Chelsea 3”, flying the Maltese flag and registered at the port of Odesa, was struck by three aerial drones about 15 nautical miles off the Bulgarian coastal town of Byala, Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced. The incident was reported at 1:30 a.m. The 15-member crew, comprising seven Ukrainian and eight Azerbaijani nationals, was evacuated to Varna. Medical assistance was provided to five injured sailors.
“Chelsea 3” was sailing from the Black Sea port of Giresun (Türkiye) to the Romanian port of Giurgiulești, and its cargo was declared as destined for Moldova. The 136-metre-long vessel, which is listing, is currently drifting unmanned off Cape of St. Athanasius, BNR correspondent in Varna Daniela Stoyneva reports.
“Another attack on commercial vessels in the immediate vicinity of Bulgarian territorial waters is absolutely unacceptable”, Prime Minister Rumen Radev said.
During an emergency meeting of the Security Council with the Council of Ministers, officials received information about another vessel that had been struck. The vessel sank approximately 17 nautical miles east of Krapets. According to preliminary information, one crew member has been rescued.
“Our Permanent Representative to NATO and our Permanent Representative to the EU have been notified. I am due to speak with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte”, Rumen Radev said. He added that he would summon Russia’s ambassador to Sofia, Eleonora Mitrofanova.