Turkish authorities announced on Tuesday that another tanker was targeted in the Black Sea while en route from Russia to Georgia, marking yet another incident believed to be linked to Ukraine that has heightened safety concerns for commercial maritime traffic in the area.
The tanker, named Midvolga 2, “reported being attacked 80 nautical miles from our coast,” stated Turkey’s maritime affairs directorate via social media platform X. The ship, which was transporting sunflower oil and had a crew of 13, did not seek help, and there were no reported injuries or damages, the directorate added.
Later, Russia’s federal agency for maritime and river navigation, Rosmorrechflot, informed state media that drones had targeted the Midvolga 2. The agency claimed that the vessel incurred only minor damage and confirmed that “no water leaks” had occurred.
The Midvolga 2 was on its way to Sinop, a port located on Turkey’s central Black Sea coastline, which stretches approximately 1,600 kilometers (994 miles) along the sea’s southern boundary.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry denied any involvement and accused Russia of orchestrating the attack.
This incident came on the heels of explosions affecting two other tankers near Turkey’s coast on Friday. A Ukrainian security official later informed AFP that Ukraine’s military had executed those previous strikes, stating that drones targeted ships “secretly transporting Russian oil.”
On Monday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the earlier drone assaults as a “concerning escalation,” emphasizing that Turkey “cannot condone these attacks under any circumstances.”
Erdogan remarked that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has escalated to a point where it “endangers navigation safety in the Black Sea.”
Reporting contributed by AFP.
