October 13, 2026
Reporter: Joseph Wilson
Eleven sailors were missing at sea on Tuesday after a drone attack sank a cargo ship off Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, in an incident that has further intensified concerns over the growing military danger to commercial shipping in the region.
Two cargo vessels were struck by drones overnight near Bulgaria, according to Bulgarian officials. One ship, the Guinea-Bissau-flagged HS Dignity, sank, while another vessel, the Malta-flagged Chelsea-3, was damaged but its entire crew was rescued.
The attacks occurred close to Bulgaria's coastline and prompted the government in Sofia to summon Russia's ambassador, although Bulgarian authorities stopped short of directly accusing Moscow of carrying out the strikes.
Prime Minister Rumen Radev described the attack as “absolutely unacceptable” and said that, regardless of who was responsible, the outcome of the incident benefited Russia.
Eleven sailors remain missing
Bulgarian authorities said five crew members from the sunken HS Dignity were rescued, but 11 others remained missing as search-and-rescue operations continued.
The vessel sank near the coastal village of Krapets, close to Bulgaria's border with Romania. Bulgarian President Iliana Iotova identified the ship as the HS Dignity, which was sailing toward the Romanian port of Braila with a partial cargo.
The ship had previously called at the Algerian port of Mostaganem, according to vessel-tracking information cited by Reuters. The fate of the missing sailors remained unknown as rescue teams continued searching the waters.
The second vessel, Chelsea-3, was struck by three drones. Its 15-member crew—seven Ukrainians and eight Azerbaijanis—was rescued, and none suffered serious injuries.
The attacks occurred roughly 32 to 34 kilometres from Bulgaria's coast, according to information reported by the Associated Press.
Bulgaria seeks NATO support
The incident has raised concerns in Sofia about the ability of Bulgaria, a NATO member, to protect its maritime approaches from attacks connected to the wider Russia-Ukraine war.
Radev spoke with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte and requested assistance in strengthening Bulgaria's maritime and airspace surveillance.
Rutte said NATO would continue adjusting its military presence on the alliance's eastern flank as necessary. Bulgaria's defence minister also held discussions with counterparts in Romania and Turkey about security in the Black Sea.
The Black Sea has become increasingly important to the war because it is used by commercial vessels transporting grain and other commodities, while Russia and Ukraine continue to attack military and economic targets connected to each other's maritime activities.
Russia denies knowledge of the attacks
Bulgaria summoned Russian Ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova following the attacks. After meeting with Radev, Mitrofanova said she had no information from Russia's Defence Ministry about attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea. She did not, however, rule out the possibility that the attacks could have been carried out as a provocation by a third party, according to the Bulgarian government.
There was no immediate public claim of responsibility from Moscow.
Bulgarian officials have therefore stopped short of declaring Russia responsible, despite the wider context of the war and the apparent strategic implications of the attacks.
Radev's comments reflected that distinction. Rather than directly accusing Moscow, the Bulgarian prime minister said the result of the attack benefited the Russian Federation.
Ukraine condemns attack
Ukraine strongly condemned the attacks and accused Moscow of threatening civilian lives and international shipping.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the incident demonstrated what he described as Russia's disregard for civilian life. He also warned that the security of the Black Sea has implications far beyond the countries directly involved in the war.
Ukraine and Russia are both major exporters of grain, making the safety of Black Sea shipping important to global food supplies.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also condemned the attacks, saying the Black Sea had become another area of escalation in Russia's war against Ukraine and that those responsible should be held accountable.
Growing danger for commercial shipping
The latest incident is particularly concerning because it follows another deadly attack on commercial vessels in the same region just one week earlier.
Last week, drones struck two ships in Bulgaria's Black Sea exclusive economic zone. One vessel sank, leaving nine Syrian sailors and one Egyptian sailor missing, while the crew of another ship was rescued.
The repeated attacks have raised fears that commercial vessels operating near Bulgaria and Romania could increasingly become caught in the conflict.
For international shipping companies, the danger is no longer limited to Ukrainian or Russian ports. Merchant vessels travelling through nearby international waters now face the possibility of drone attacks, even when they are not directly involved in military operations.
Black Sea becomes another battlefield
The attacks are part of a broader transformation of the Black Sea during the Russia-Ukraine war. Russia has repeatedly attacked Ukrainian Black Sea ports and maritime infrastructure, forcing Ukraine to rely increasingly on ports along the Danube and shipping routes close to the territorial waters of NATO members Bulgaria and Romania.
Ukraine has also expanded its maritime campaign against Russian interests, including attacks on Russian grain-exporting vessels in other parts of the Black Sea and near the Azov Sea.
The result has been an increasingly dangerous environment for civilian shipping.
The Black Sea is one of the world's most important agricultural trade routes. Disruption to shipping can affect grain supplies, food prices and international markets, particularly in countries that depend heavily on exports from Ukraine and Russia.
NATO faces a growing security challenge
The latest attack presents a difficult challenge for NATO. Bulgaria and Romania are both members of the alliance, and commercial ships operating near their coastlines are increasingly exposed to a conflict occurring just beyond NATO territory.
A direct attack on NATO territory would carry significantly greater consequences, but repeated incidents close to alliance waters are already forcing member states to strengthen surveillance and maritime security.
Radev's request for increased monitoring reflects concerns that Bulgaria needs better capabilities to detect drones and other threats approaching its coastline.
NATO's response will therefore be closely watched as the alliance attempts to prevent the conflict from spilling further into the waters surrounding its eastern members.
For the families of the 11 sailors still missing from the HS Dignity, the immediate priority remains the search and rescue operation.
The sinking also highlights the human cost of the expanding maritime dimension of the Russia-Ukraine war. Commercial sailors from countries far removed from the battlefield can find themselves caught in attacks while simply transporting goods between international ports.
As the war continues, the Black Sea is becoming an increasingly contested space where military operations, commercial shipping and global food supplies intersect.
The latest attacks have not yet produced a definitive public determination of responsibility. But with one cargo ship sunk, another damaged and 11 sailors still missing, Bulgaria and its NATO allies face growing pressure to improve the protection of civilian shipping and prevent the Black Sea from becoming an even more dangerous front in the conflict.