Blasts in Black Sea: Drones sink Greek-owned cargo vessel off Bulgaria

A Greek-owned container vessel has sunk in the western Black Sea after being hit by uncrewed surface vehicles (USVs) off the coast of Bulgaria. The incident marks the latest in a series of maritime strikes that have raised international concerns regarding the expanding geographic scope of the war in Ukraine.

The Liberian-flagged vessel, CONTSHIP JET, was transit-bound from Haifa, Israel, to Constanța, Romania, carrying 421 containers when the strike occurred. Official reports state that three naval drones struck the vessel inside Bulgaria’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), outside its territorial waters. The attack severely damaged the ship's hull, causing it to list and ultimately sink.

Management firm Contships confirmed that all 18 crew members, comprising 14 Filipino and four Ukrainian nationals, were safely rescued. Emergency responders evacuated the personnel and transferred them to the Bulgarian port city of Varna. Footage of the incident verified by news agency Reuters showed a matte black, five-to-six-metre-long sea drone approaching the vessel at high speed before detonating against the hull. Tomas Alexa, a senior analyst at global maritime risk management firm Ambrey, identified the USV as a remotely controlled platform likely derived from the Russian Murena-300S design. Former Ukrainian naval officer Andriy Ryzhenko noted that the drone depicted did not match any known Ukrainian naval models.

Although no party has formally claimed responsibility, the attack fits a broader pattern of escalating aggression in the region. Bulgarian authorities reported that at least six commercial ships have been targeted by drones off the country's coast this month, resulting in approximately two dozen estimated fatalities among seafarers. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev observed that recent strikes appear to strategically benefit Russia. Moscow has denied involvement in the recent Black Sea shipping attacks and issued no immediate comment on Wednesday's strike.

Bulgarian Navy Commander Kiril Mihaylov revealed that a French patrol aircraft had alerted local authorities to the impending drone threat, though forces were unable to intercept the attack in time.

Despite concerns over the ship's cargo, which included lithium-ion batteries, industrial components, and corrosive chemicals, initial environmental inspections conducted on Thursday detected no visible traces of marine pollution at the crash site.