Zapryanov: Russia aims to isolate Ukraine at sea

The drone attacks on vessels in the Black Sea are part of Russia's attempt to limit the transport of goods to and from Ukraine. This was stated by former Minister of Defense Atanas Zapryanov in the program “Offensive with Lyubo Ognyanov“ on NOVA NEWS.

His comment comes after two waves of attacks in the Bulgarian exclusive economic zone, in which the presence of potential enemy targets with allied aircraft is already observed. Zapryanov linked the individual incidents to a common line of escalation.

“The entire escalation of events in the Black Sea – from the first strike on a ship in our economic space to the last – is an escalation by Russia to stop shipping that carries goods to or from Ukraine. This is the isolation of Ukraine at sea“, said Zapryanov.

The difference between the economic and territorial zone

According to the former military minister, the situation would take on an even more serious dimension if such actions were to occur in Bulgaria's territorial waters.

„If these things happen in our territorial waters, this will really be a test, because the air and sea space, as well as our territory, are part of NATO and we should guarantee security there“, he pointed out.

Zapryanov also commented on the position of the European Parliament, which condemned the escalation of Russian actions in the Black Sea. He recalled that at the beginning of the war, Russia had declared zones prohibited for shipping in the form of military exercises.

According to him, these warnings were taken into account by shipping at the time, but today the situation is different, because there is already talk of attacks on civilian vessels. The northern part of the Black Sea has been a “theater of military operations“ since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the former minister also said.

Criticism of the initial reaction

Zapryanov described the initial reaction of the Bulgarian authorities after the first attack in the exclusive economic zone as creating the impression of hesitation. According to him, the subsequent incidents led to more active actions and better coordination with the allies.

He also commented on the question of whether Bulgaria should have activated Article 4 of NATO. According to him, the country had such an opportunity, without this automatically meaning a transition to collective defense under Article 5.

„In any case, we have the opportunity, if we do not want Article 4, to request consultations with the North Atlantic Council and NATO intervention. What actually happened then“, said Zapryanov.

According to him, Russia can use the escalation in the Black Sea as a means of demonstrating force before the expected start of negotiations.

Sources: nova.bg