Bulgaria's leader says drone attack hits 2 commercial vessels, and Ukraine's president blames Russia

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgaria's prime minister said that two commercial vessels were struck by drones on Tuesday in the first attack on shipping in the NATO member’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea.

Bulgarian authorities said that the origin of the drones was under investigation, but Ukraine's president blamed Russia for the drone strikes. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev condemned the attack.

“This is an unacceptable attack in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone. It is a blatant violation of international law and maritime law,” Radev said after an emergency government meeting.

Sea and aerial drones attacked the ships at around 3 a.m., about 80 miles (128 kilometers) off Bulgaria ’s coast, he said.

The Togo-flagged Alfa Watan suffered critical structural damage and sank at the scene. There was no immediate word on the crew’s fate, he said. The second vessel, the Palau-flagged Able, caught fire after the attack. A Bulgarian ferry evacuated all 18 crew members. Two sailors suffered severe injuries and were flown to a hospital in the port city of Varna, Radev said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Ukraine's military didn't conduct any operations near where the vessels were struck, and pointed the finger at Moscow's forces.

“This latest tragedy involving civilian vessels is another part of Russia’s effort to make the western Black Sea completely unfit for navigation,” Zelenskyy said. “We verified all the details with the Bulgarian side. Our Navy contacted its counterparts in Bulgaria, and it has been established that this was a combined Russian attack using maritime and aerial drones.”

There was no immediate comment on the accusation from Russian officials. NATO declined to comment and referred all inquiries about the drone attack to Bulgarian authorities.

President Iliana Yotova has convened an emergency meeting of Bulgaria's Security Council for Wednesday afternoon that will focus on “current risks and threats to Bulgaria’s maritime security and critical infrastructure in the context of the war in Ukraine.”

The Able was carrying wheat and sailing south, while the Alfa Watan was heading north. The Alfa Watan’s cargo was unknown, Radev said, adding that authorities were monitoring for possible oil spills and other environmental pollution.

“As a state responsible within our exclusive economic zone for the health and lives of anyone navigating in this area, regardless of who is responsible, we are obliged to conduct emergency search and rescue operations,” he said.

“What is happening is seriously disrupting shipping in the Black Sea, driving up insurance costs even further and making shipping extremely difficult,” Radev said.

He warned that the war was expanding geographically and increasing the risk of global conflict.

The attacks came a day after a Turkish-owned cargo ship carrying corn caught fire following a drone attack and later sank in the Black Sea. Two people died and 11 crew members were rescued, Romanian authorities said.

Last month, NATO's top commander, U.S. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, urged member countries to publicly identify those they believe responsible for drone incidents or acts of sabotage once sufficient evidence has been gathered.

The German government took almost a month to publicly blame Russia for an attempted Aug. 4 attack at Leipzig/Halle Airport involving a drone laden with explosives.