Drone attacks in Black Sea pose new challenges to Bulgarian border police, in photos

SOZOPOL, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgarian border police crews are responding to drone attacks on commercial ships as Russia’s war in Ukraine brings growing danger to shipping off the Black Sea coasts of NATO members Bulgaria and Romania.

Over 24 days in October, nine cargo ships and tankers were struck by aerial or naval drones near the Bulgarian and Romanian coastlines. At least 30 sailors on commercial ships were confirmed dead or reported missing.

The attacks have added dangerous rescue missions to the duties of Bulgarian border police, who also combat unauthorized migration and cross-border crime.

During one recent operation, a border police patrol helped the crew of the Chelsea 3, a Ukraine-operated cargo ship sailing under a Maltese flag, after it was hit by three drones.

All 15 crew members were rescued from the damaged vessel despite strong winds and high waves, said Nikolay Monev, who commands the border police base in Sozopol on Bulgaria’s southern Black Sea coast.

“We are capable of an immediate response. Our vessels serve as the first line of response to such situations, including incidents involving drones,” Monev said.

The Sozopol base, established in 2013 with EU funding, keeps between two and five vessels on active duty at all times. Patrol operations are supported by coastal surveillance stations equipped with radar, thermal imaging and daylight cameras.

Throughout the war, Russia has repeatedly bombarded Ukraine’s Black Sea and Danube River ports. Some NATO members wonder if Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking escalation to test their support for Ukraine.

“For a long time, the war in Ukraine was viewed in Bulgaria as a conflict taking place on the other side of the sea, and we were affected primarily by rising prices, refugees and political tensions,” analyst Ruslan Trad wrote in the Bulgarian business weekly Capital last week.

“Now, for the first time, it is very clear that the sea is not a border but a shared space," Trad added. "Whatever happens on its eastern side can reach our waters.”

Toshkov reported from Sofia, Bulgaria.