Drones strike two tankers off Romania, leaving seven sailors missing
Seven sailors were missing after drones struck two tankers near Romania's Black Sea coast. The vessels caught fire overnight, and rescuers were searching on Thursday, Oct. 15 for the missing crew. The Guardian
The two tankers were identified as the Wine Trader and the Yara J. They caught fire near the mouth of the Danube River's Sulina Canal leading to the Black Sea, on a shipping route used by Ukraine.
The missing crew were from the Wine Trader. The San Marino-flagged chemical tanker was travelling from Tunisia to Romania and reported a fire aboard at 07:00 a.m. local time near the city of Sulina. It had 12 crew members, with five reported safe and seven missing. DW The Yara J, also described as a chemical tanker, was struck just inside Romanian waters late on Wednesday. All crew on the Yara J were safe.
A NATO military source told Reuters the drones that hit the two ships were of Russian origin, and said the fires inside Romanian territorial waters were caused by drones of Russian origin. Romania's President Nicușor Dan said the two ships had been struck by drones but declined to say whether Russia was responsible. Bulgaria's President Rumen Radev said in Brussels on Thursday that the results of the attack favour Russia but there is no solid evidence the drones are Russian.
The Romania strikes follow attacks off Bulgaria. On Tuesday, drone strikes on two ships off the Bulgarian coast prompted emergency rescue operations. Rescuers evacuated all 15 crew members from the Ukrainian-operated Chelsea 3, with five receiving treatment for minor injuries. The crew reported that the ship's deck and hull were hit by three aerial drones. The Chelsea 3 sails under a Maltese flag. Eleven crew members from the HS Dignity, a cargo ship sailing under a Guinea-Bissau flag, remain missing. According to Reuters, at least 23 sailors have been reported missing or killed after attacks on commercial shipping near the coasts of Bulgaria and Romania in the past 10 days.
Dan described the Black Sea situation as serious and stated that commercial ships are being attacked and sunk. He met with Radev and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte on Thursday and said they agreed to strengthen defences in the Black Sea. Rutte said NATO will continue to work closely with allies in the Black Sea, adjusting deterrence and defence posture as needed. A NATO official said the tanker attacks issue would be discussed at a North Atlantic Council meeting next week. Romania has reported repeated breaches of its airspace by Russian drones over the past four years. Reuters
