Nato chief meets Romanian President and Bulgarian PM on attacks on commercial shipping in Black Sea
Nato has strengthened its posture along the eastern flank including with increasing counter-drone capabilities, the organisation’s Secretary General Mark Rutte said on X on October 15 after a meeting with Romanian President Nicușor Dan and Bulgarian Prime Minister Roumen Radev.
The meeting – held in Brussels where the European Council is meeting – was about security in the Black Sea and the latest attacks on commercial shipping, Rutte said.
“Nato will continue to work closely with our Allies in the Black Sea, adjusting our deterrence and defence posture as needed,” he said.
Rutte said that it had been a “good meeting” with Dan and Radev.
Overnight into October 15, there were fires aboard two vessels in Romania’s territorial waters, said to be the result of drone strikes.
On the night of October 14, there was a fire aboard the Comoros-flagged fuel tanker Yara J near the Romanian port of Sulina. The crew was evacuated.
In the early morning of October 15, the San Marino-flagged Wine Trade requested assistance after a fire broke out on board. Eight of the 12 crew members are missing.
A total of four ships have come under attack in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea, in incidents on October 6 and 13, with two sunk and several lives lost. Radev has said that most likely the attacks were by Russia, but he has insisted that he does not have the evidence to confirm this.
In a message on X after the October 15 meeting, Radev thanked Rutte “for the clear signal: Black Sea securityis is Eastern Flank security”.
Nato monitors closely the situation and stands ready to help Bulgaria and Romania strengthen anti-drone capabilities and maritime monitoring after recent attacks on merchant ships, Radev said.
“Bulgaria calls for collective efforts towards safe navigation in Black Sea,” he said.
Dan said on X after the meeting: “With our Nato Allies, we have a commitment to defend every inch of our territory, including our waters and airspace”.
The situation in the Black Sea is serious, Dan said.
“Commercial ships are being attacked and sunk. Seafarers killed, injured, and missing, very close to the shores of Romania and Bulgaria. This is unacceptable and it has to stop,” he said.
“Lives, global trade, and critical infrastructure are at stake. We stand together for a safe and open Black Sea, for Romania, Bulgaria, Europe, and the whole world,” Dan said.
On October 14, Dan said on X that he had had a “very good” phone call with Bulgarian President Iliana Yotova regarding the recent drone attack on commercial ships in the Black Sea off the Bulgarian coast, as well as the other incidents that affected shipping and infrastructure in Romanian waters.
“These drone attacks are direct consequences of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and endanger not only shipping in our region but also vital agricultural supplies to other continents,” Dan said.
“We agreed that Romania and Bulgaria will work closely together to push for stronger counter-drone measures within the EU and Nato in order to ensure safe commercial shipping in the Black Sea,” he said.
(Photo, of Dan, Rutte and Radev via Rutte’s X page)
