Two Merchant Ships Hit in Bulgaria’s Black Sea Economic Zone

The shipping lane now comes with a rescue operation.

Bulgarian authorities said air and sea drones hit two merchant ships in the country’s Black Sea exclusive economic zone on October 6, roughly 70 nautical miles east of Byala. One ship sank. The other caught fire and its crew was evacuated; two injured sailors were taken toward Varna. The search for the sunken ship’s crew was continuing in the official account.^[1][4]

The account of responsibility developed during the day. Prime Minister Rumen Radev initially said the drones’ country of origin could not yet be established accurately. Later, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukrainian naval contacts with Bulgarian colleagues had established that Russia carried out the combined attack. That is Ukraine’s stated conclusion; the earlier Bulgarian announcement left attribution open.^[2][3][4]

Ursula von der Leyen condemned attacks on civilian shipping and expressed solidarity with EU members on the eastern flank. Her post also stressed that the circumstances were still being established.^[5]

Keep your glazzies on those distinctions. A changing official account deserves careful attribution, and missing sailors deserve better than being turned into somebody’s instant certainty.

“Unacceptable” is the diplomatic word. The crews need it translated into protection.