Sailor from ship hit in Bulgaria’s Black Sea EEZ blames Russia

A sailor from one of the two vessels attacked in Bulgaria’s Black Sea exclusive economic zone on October 6 has pinned the blame on Russia, saying that he believes that Russia used a depth charge against the vessel he was aboard.

The October 6 attacks left one of the ships sunk and its crew missing, while the other ship was set on fire. Its crew was rescued.

The sailor, not identified by name in media reports from Varna, was from the Palau-flagged cargo vessel Able. He was among those transported to Varna, after which the sailors were taken to the Border Police, where they were to be examined by medical teams.

“I’m from Türkiye. I think the Russians dropped a depth charge on us, a fire broke out. It wasn’t a drone, it was underwater. I think it was Russian because we were carrying Ukrainian cargo,” he said.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Roumen Radev, who earlier on October 6 held an emergency meeting, said that the attack was complex, with sea and air drones.

“I still cannot say which country the drones that attacked the ships are from. We are still trying to establish where the attack came from, but it is clear – they are either Russian or Ukrainian,” Radev said.

He said that he had already informed the EU Council and Nato about what happened.

Radev said that there was no need for Bulgaria to activate Articles 4 and 5 – the mandatory consultations and mutual defence provisions, respectively – because there were “more serious” cases of attacks.

“This is 130 km from our coast, it falls within our economic zone, but these are not yet territorial waters, they are considered neutral. There were such attacks in Poland and Romania, where an apartment building was also hit,” Radev said.

“These issues are being brought to the attention of Nato, where it is decided in what way and what the response should be. But the question has already been raised,” Radev said.

This is hardly the most serious incident, but it is serious as a trend, because when a war is not stopped in time and begins to intensify, it expands its spatial scope, he said.

President Iliana Yotova announced that she is convening a meeting of the Consultative Council on National Security on October 7.

The topic is “Current risks and threats to Bulgaria’s maritime security and critical infrastructure in the context of the war in Ukraine”.

Opposition parties have sharply and repeatedly criticised Yotova for failing to convene the Consultative Council on National Security.

The Consultative Council on National Security, which is convened by the head of state and includes key government ministers, security, defence and intelligence chiefs and representatives of all parliamentary groups, is meant by law to meet at least every three months.

This is the first time that Yotova, who took over as president in January 2026 and is seeking election as head of state in her own right the autumn elections, is convening the council.

In recent months, there have been numerous calls from the opposition due to the escalation of the war in Ukraine, the war in Iran, Russian drone attacks on European countries, and the September explosions in the warehouses of the Emco weapons plant. These calls were repeated by the opposition on October 6.

The Environment Ministry said on October 6 that by order of the Minister of Environment and Water Rositsa Karamfilova, the Black Sea Region Basin Directorate Varna has begun a special inspection in the Bulgarian Black Sea region in connection with the incident with the ships in the Black Sea.

“Today, inspections and sampling of sea waters will be carried out in the areas of Cape Kaliakra, Byala and Sozopol,” the ministry said.

The water samples taken will be tested for the presence of petroleum products, polychlorinated biphenyls, metals and physico-chemical quality elements.

The sampling will be carried out by teams of the Regional Laboratories in Varna and Bourgas of the Executive Agency for the Environment.

The purpose of the inspection is to establish the current state of the sea waters in the indicated areas and any possible pollution related to the incident.

The public would be promptly informed about the results of the inspection and laboratory tests after they have been completed, the ministry said.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on X on October 6: “The situation in the Black Sea is increasingly concerning”.

Commercial ships – and innocent crews – are being targeted, with lives already lost at sea, Von der Leyen said.

“Today, two commercial vessels were hit in Bulgaria’s economic zone in Black Sea. This comes just one day after a Turkish ship carrying Ukrainian grain was struck and sunk off the Romanian coast,” she said.

“While exact circumstances of these incidents are still being established, the developments are very concerning. Attacks on civilian shipping are unacceptable. We stand in full solidarity with our Member States on the Eastern flank,” Von der Leyen said.