Drones sink ship off Bulgaria in Black Sea NATO alert

An alert has been sounded in Bulgaria, as drones struck two commercial vessels in the Black Sea, off the Bulgarian coast, resulting in one of them sinking.
The Bulgarian government announced that Prime Minister Rumen Radev will make a statement on Tuesday, October 6, as authorities remain on high alert following the attacks.
According to information available so far, this represents the first attack against commercial shipping within the exclusive economic zone of a NATO member state.
Rumen Radev is expected to speak at the opening of an emergency government meeting convened following the strikes.

Crew of the sunken vessel missing

A major search and rescue operation is underway to locate the crew members of the sunken ship.
The Bulgarian state broadcaster BNR, citing Rumen Nikolov, head of rescue operations in Varna, reported that the crew of the sunken vessel is missing.
Conversely, the crew members of the second vessel were rescued.
According to Bulgarian maritime news outlet Maritime.bg, the two ships are the Alfa Watan and the Able.
The Alfa Watan reportedly sank, while a fire broke out on the Able following the attack, leading the 18 crew members to abandon ship.
The seafarers were transferred to the Bulgarian ferry Dioscuria, with some among them reportedly injured.

Origin of the drones still unknown

So far, it has not been determined where the drones that carried out the attacks originated.
This fact intensifies concern in Sofia, as the incident occurred in the Black Sea, in an area directly linked to maritime trade routes and the security of nations on NATO's eastern flank.
The Bulgarian government is convening an emergency meeting, while further information is awaited regarding the circumstances under which the strikes were carried out.

The Alfa Watan was heading toward Romania

According to vessel tracking website VesselFinder, the Alfa Watan was sailing under the flag of Togo and was bound for the Romanian port of Sulina.
The last known position of the vessel was recorded shortly after 1:00 AM on Tuesday, approximately 70 nautical miles off the Bulgarian coast.
Shortly thereafter, the ship reportedly came under attack and ultimately sank.
The development causes particular concern, as the attack took place in a maritime area hitherto considered critical yet relatively secure for commercial navigation.

New attack just one day later

The incident in Bulgaria comes just one day after another serious attack against a merchant ship in the Black Sea.
A Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying grain was attacked by at least one drone.
The ship was engulfed in flames and ultimately sank.
The close timing of the two incidents reinforces fears of escalating attacks against merchant vessels in the Black Sea, with immediate ramifications for maritime safety, exports, and critical trade routes in the region.
For Bulgaria, the incident takes on even greater significance, as it involves a NATO member state and an attack on ships located within its economic zone.
The government is now called upon to manage a new and exceptionally dangerous reality in the Black Sea, while the major question that remains unanswered is who is behind the attacks and whether these are isolated incidents or the beginning of a broader campaign against commercial shipping.

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