Calling the strikes on merchant ships in the Black Sea "unacceptable" is a rather strange assessment, said former Foreign Minister Nadezhda Neynski. Her comment was in response to the position of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who described the attacks on civilian vessels in the Bulgarian economic zone as "unacceptable."
“This war is already in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone. It poses a threat to Bulgarian national security,” Neynski told bTV. According to her, the reaction should not be limited to political condemnation, but should include concrete actions to prevent new incidents.
Two ships were hit near Byala
On October 6, two merchant ships were attacked by air and sea drones about 70 nautical miles east of Byala. The Togolese-flagged “Alpha Watan“ sank, and its crew remained missing after the rescue operation. The second ship – “Able“, flagged by Palau, was damaged and a fire broke out on board.
The 18-member crew of “Able“ was evacuated by the Bulgarian ship “Dioscuria“. One of the rescued sailors has severe burns, and another has a head injury. The Chief of Defense, Admiral Emil Eftimov, said that the attack was a combined one and that the crew of the sunken ship had about three minutes to react.
The perpetrator has not yet been identified
The Bulgarian authorities have not yet definitively announced who is behind the attack. The National Security Advisory Council insisted on an immediate investigation and defined the strikes as a gross violation of international maritime law. After its completion, the executive branch must inform the public about the results.
According to Neynski, the issue is not limited to establishing the origin of the drones. “We expect them to not just say it was a drone. We expect them to tell us what they will do to prevent it from happening again“, she said.
Call for consultations in NATO
The former foreign minister called on Bulgaria to request consultations under Article 4 of the North Atlantic Treaty. She specified that this mechanism does not automatically trigger Article 5, but allows a member state to present its security concerns to allies and request support.
Nejinsky insisted that Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey work with NATO to create mechanisms to protect shipping in the Black Sea, including through the exchange of intelligence information, anti-drone systems and additional surveillance. She also warned of the economic consequences if commercial shipping is put under constant threat: higher transport and insurance costs, which will ultimately affect Bulgarian consumers.
The topic of security in the Black Sea is expected to be presented at the European level at the European Union summit on October 15 and 16. In the meantime, the investigation into the perpetrators of the attack continues, and the fate of the crew of the “Alpha Watan“ remains unknown.
Sources: btvnovinite.bg, bta.bg