By Euronews
Published on •Updated
Two ships were hit by drones in the Black Sea and one sank, Bulgaria's Prime Minister Rumen Radev said on Tuesday.
The incident reportedly happened around 24 kilometres off Bulgaria's coast.
Radev gave no further information about where the ships came from or what cargo, if any, they were carrying.
He also gave no information about where the drones might have come from.
It’s not the first time such an incident has been reported by Bulgaria in the Black Sea.
Earlier this month, Radev described a drone attack on 6 October, some 130km off the country's coast, as "absolutely unacceptable". One merchant ship sank and another was damaged. Radev did not attribute blame, with an investigation still underway.
Romanian Foreign Minister Oana-Silvia Țoiu described a deadly incident off the country’s coast a day earlier as “a flagrant violation of international law.”
Meanwhile, a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying Ukrainian grain caught fire and subsequently sank off Romania.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the vessel had been attacked by Russian drones. Two people onboard were killed.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned both incidents.
"The situation in the Black Sea is increasingly concerning," she said. "Attacks on civilian shipping are unacceptable."
The incidents have renewed scrutiny of Europe's ability to protect shipping and critical infrastructure in the Black Sea, more than a year after the EU launched a strategy to strengthen security in the region.
This is a developing story and our journalists are working on further updates.