The attacks against the two merchant ships in the Black Sea can be used by Russia to put pressure before possible negotiations. This was stated by MEP from the European People's Party and leader of the UDF Iliya Lazarov to Radio Blagoevgrad.
According to him, Moscow is interested in showing that it can influence shipping and control the security of sea routes. Lazarov, however, clarified that this is a political assessment, not an expert conclusion, and that without sufficient evidence it is impossible to establish who is behind the attacks.
“This is part of raising the price in future negotiations“, Lazarov said.Two ships were hit in the Bulgarian economic zone
On October 6, two merchant ships were attacked in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, about 70 nautical miles east of Byala. The Togolese-flagged “Alpha Watan“ sank, and its crew remained missing. A fire broke out on the Palau-flagged ship “Able“, but all 18 crew members were evacuated and rescued with the help of the Bulgarian ship “Dioscuria“.
Russia and Ukraine have denied responsibility for the strikes. The Russian embassy in Sofia said the two ships were not among the targets hit by the Russian armed forces and called for the results of the investigation to be awaited. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky also denied Ukrainian operations in the area, but said it was a combined Russian attack with sea and air drones.
Bulgaria awaits evidence of the origin of the drones
Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova said the Russian ambassador would be summoned if clear evidence of a Russian attack was found. Transport Minister Georgi Peev stressed that no assumptions should be made about the origin of the drones before the investigation is complete. At the request of Bulgaria and Romania, the European Maritime Safety Agency is providing satellite data to assist the investigation.
Lazarov called on Bulgaria to act jointly with Romania and Turkey within NATO and to formulate its specific demands to the allies. According to him, the continued uncertainty surrounding shipping could increase transport costs and affect the prices of goods. He also warned of possible consequences for grain supplies from Russia and Ukraine to Africa.
Sources: bnrnews.bg, bgonair.bg, nova.bg