// ARS TECHNICA — MONDO
Black Sea drone attacks enter NATO country's territorial waters for first time
Suspected Russian drones attack chemical tanker within Romanian waters.
Russian drones are suspected of sinking a cargo ship and leaving chemical tankers ablaze near the Black Sea coasts of Bulgaria and Romania, respectively. The latest attacks mean that at least seven ships have been attacked in the exclusive economic zones of NATO member countries—and even within Romania’s territorial waters if Russian involvement is confirmed in the case of the chemical tankers.
Such attacks have spurred requests for NATO to redeploy counter-drone systems to provide more protection. In a social media post on October 15, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated that NATO had increased “counter-drone capabilities” along the alliance’s eastern flank after meeting with the leaders of Bulgaria and Romania.
The latest attacks this week occurred within 24 hours between October 14 and October 15, when the two chemical tankers were set afire after Russian drones were detected in Romanian airspace, according to Deutsche Welle. Both ships were sitting at anchor near the mouth of the Sulina canal that connects the Black Sea to the Danube River, which has become a crucial shipping export route for Ukraine, Reuters reported.
The Comoros-flagged chemical tanker Yara J was struck within Romania’s territorial waters. All crew members were rescued and accounted for.
However, Romanian authorities are still searching for seven missing sailors after rescuing five people from the San Marino-flagged tanker Wine Trader, according to Reuters. This second tanker was struck while sitting just one mile outside Romanian territorial waters.
Reuters cited an anonymous NATO source as attributing the drone attacks to Russia.
A NATO statement also described a Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier named Sea Destiny as also having been targeted inside Romanian waters overnight, along with a Tanzanian-flagged tanker named Dania J coming under attack in the Danube port city of Izmail in Ukraine. But there were no immediate details about damage or casualties.
This comes just days after suspected Russian drone attacks sank a cargo ship and forced the evacuation of another vessel within two dozen miles of the coast of Bulgaria in the Black Sea on October 13. Those attacks occurred within Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone.
One of the cargo ships that came under attack was the Ukrainian-operated coastal freighter Chelsea 3, registered under the flag of Malta. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev told the Russian ambassador in Sofia that “it makes no sense for Ukraine to destroy its own ships in the Black Sea, and the results of these strikes favor Russia’s interests,” according to The Associated Press.