Μake us preferred on Google A Liberian-flagged container ship that was struck by drones off Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast has sunk, local maritime authorities said Thursday.
Bulgarian Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said three maritime drones hit the Contship Jet on Wednesday about 21 nautical miles off the Bulgarian coast, while other reports placed the attack about 17 nautical miles east of Cape Kaliakra. It was the fifth drone attack inside the NATO member’s exclusive economic zone this month. Bulgarian authorities confirmed Thursday morning that the vessel went down around midnight.
The Greek-managed ship was traveling from the Israeli port of Haifa to Constanța, Romania, with 421 containers on board. It is part of the fleet of Contships Management, a company founded in 2015 by Greek shipowner Nikos Pateras.
Crew members from a ship damaged in a drone attack disembark from a Bulgarian border police vessel in Varna, Bulgaria, following a rescue operation after sea drones struck a container ship off Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast, October 28, 2026. REUTERS/Orlin Tsanev
Crew members from a ship damaged in a drone attack disembark from a Bulgarian border police vessel in Varna, Bulgaria, following a rescue operation after sea drones struck a container ship off Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast, October 28, 2026. REUTERS/Orlin Tsanev
How the Attack Unfolded
A French maritime patrol aircraft flying over the western Black Sea spotted the drones approaching and alerted the Bulgarian Navy. The crew was also warned and tried to maneuver the ship out of the drones’ path, but was unable to avoid them.
The first drone struck the vessel. All 18 crew members, 14 from the Philippines and four from Ukraine, were then rescued by Bulgarian navy and border police vessels and taken to the port of Varna for medical checks. Eight were picked up by a navy vessel, while the other ten were rescued from the ship’s lifeboat. After the crew was evacuated, the ship was hit by the two remaining drones. As seawater flooded in, it began to list and drift south before sinking around midnight.
Hazardous Cargo at Sea
The Bulgarian maritime website Maritime.bg reported that some containers held lithium-ion batteries, flammable liquids, gases and other hazardous materials. At least 20 containers fell overboard, prompting navigational warnings for other vessels. Navy teams that took water samples at several points in Bulgarian territorial waters found no signs of pollution.
Regional Allies Condemn Attacks
The attack happened while the defense ministers of Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey were meeting in Sofia to discuss Black Sea security. After the talks, the three NATO allies strongly condemned the drone attacks on merchant ships and demanded an immediate end to strikes that endanger commercial vessels, maritime infrastructure and safe navigation.
They also agreed to step up intelligence sharing, early warning systems and coordination in the region. Turkish Defense Minister Yaşar Güler noted that commercial ships in the Black Sea have been hit by drones, drifting mines and missiles during the war.
Suspicion Falls on Moscow
Since the start of October, at least nine civilian vessels have been attacked off the coasts of Bulgaria and Romania. The attacks in the two countries’ exclusive economic zones have left two people dead and at least 25 missing, according to the AP. Among them was the Khoryv, which sank near Constanța on October 23, leaving one sailor dead and three missing.
A Bulgarian border police vessel carrying crew members from a ship damaged in a drone attack, in Varna, Bulgaria, following a rescue operation after one vessel was sunk and another damaged in the Black Sea off Bulgaria, October 6, 2026. REUTERS/Petko Momchilov
The capsized Comoros-flagged oil cargo carrier Khoryv in the black sea, as the Romanian Naval Authority said on Friday it was conducting a search and rescue mission to save the crew of a cargo ship in the Black Sea, close to its territorial waters, October 23, 2026, in this screengrab obtained from a handout video. ROMANIAN INTERIOR MINISTRY/Handout via REUTERS.
The series of incidents has led some NATO members to question whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to test their support for Ukraine. Russia has not claimed responsibility for the attacks off Bulgaria and Romania, but suspicion has focused on Moscow. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev told parliament earlier this month that the logic points toward Russia, but that Bulgaria cannot prove it. Bulgaria summoned the Russian ambassador on October 13 after the fourth attack on merchant ships in its waters.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev speaks to Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria, Eleonora Mitrofanova, during a meeting in Sofia, Bulgaria, October 13, 2026. Bulgarian Government/Handout via REUTERS
At the same time, Moscow has openly claimed other strikes on merchant shipping. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Wednesday that its unmanned systems hit a dry cargo ship heading to the Ukrainian port of Chornomorsk, claiming it was carrying supplies for Ukraine’s armed forces. On Thursday, Moscow announced another attack on a general cargo ship bound for Odesa, saying it was transporting military and dual-use equipment that can serve both civilian and military purposes. Neither claim has been independently verified, and Russia has not identified the vessels.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said earlier this month that the Black Sea has become a new front in the escalation of Russia’s war in Ukraine. On October 15, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said the alliance had reinforced its eastern flank, including with more counter-drone capabilities, as attacks on commercial ships become more frequent.
