All 15 crew members of one vessel, a Ukrainian-owned ship sailing under the Maltese flag, were rescued, while 11 crew members of the sunken ship remain missing.
The vessel sank off the village of Krapets, near the Romanian border, and was identified by President Iliana Iotova as the Guinea-Bissau-flagged cargo ship HS Dignity. She said search and rescue operations were continuing.
Last week, drones struck two other ships in the Black Sea, sinking one and leaving 10 crew members missing.
Radev said there was no clear evidence of who was behind the attack but noted that “the outcome benefits” Russia. He also announced that the Russian ambassador would be summoned to explain the incident.
As a NATO member, Bulgaria occupies a strategic position on the Black Sea, where both Russia and Ukraine have vital ports.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen condemned the attacks, saying that “the Black Sea has become another front in the escalation of Russia’s war in Ukraine.”
Source: Al Jazeera
