President Iliana Yotova is in talks with her Romanian and Turkish counterparts to include an emergency item on the agenda of the upcoming European Council meeting in Brussels. The aim is to discuss a moratorium on the use of drones against commercial and civilian infrastructure in the Black Sea.
The meeting of European Union leaders is scheduled for October 15-16. According to the information presented by Yotova, the talks with the neighboring Black Sea countries are aimed at a common position, but no final agreement has yet been announced.
The proposal comes after new attacks on ships
The topic of security in the Black Sea was raised after the drone attacks on two merchant ships on October 6 in the Bulgarian exclusive economic zone. One vessel sank and the second was engulfed in fire. The incidents led to an extraordinary meeting of the National Security Advisory Council.
After the meeting, Yotova said that Bulgaria should begin urgent consultations with Romania and Turkey to stop the attacks on merchant ships and to ensure safe shipping. The National Security Advisory Council proposed that the country seek agreement between the six countries with access to the Black Sea – Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia and Turkey.
„Bulgaria to take an active role in negotiations, finding consensus between the countries bordering the Black Sea – Russia, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania, Georgia and Turkey – for a moratorium on hostilities in the Black Sea and for transforming it into a zone of shared security“, said Iliana Yotova.Among the measures discussed are also enhanced air and maritime surveillance, strengthening coastal defense and increasing the capabilities to counter unmanned systems. Bulgaria insists that the issue of freedom and safety of navigation be raised in European, NATO and international formats.
The next stage is for diplomatic talks with Romania and Turkey to lead to a common text or a specific proposal to be presented to European leaders in Brussels.
Sources: btvnovinite.bg, bntnews.bg, nova.bg