Two chemical tankers caught fire overnight near the mouth of the Danube River's Sulina Canal off Romania, and rescuers were searching on Thursday for seven missing crew from one of them, the San Marino-flagged Wine Trader, Romanian officials said, according to Reuters. Romania's President Nicusor Dan, speaking in Brussels ahead of a summit of EU leaders, said the two ships had been struck by drones, but declined to say whether they were Russian, Reuters reported. The BBC reported a different stage of the same developing account: eight of the Wine Trader's 12 crew missing, and Romanian officials not yet saying what caused the fire.
What happened to the two tankers?
Both ships were anchored near the mouth of the Sulina Canal, where vessels wait to enter the Danube because of weather and congestion, and both were empty of cargo, Reuters reported. The Wine Trader was hit 13 nautical miles southeast of Sulina, one mile outside Romanian waters: seven of its 12 crew were missing and five had been rescued in Reuters' updated account. The Comoros-flagged chemical and oil tanker Yara J caught fire late on Wednesday 8–10 miles southeast of Sulina, inside national waters; Romanian authorities initially said it was not clear whether it had been attacked, and all of its crew were safe. The BBC, reporting earlier in the day, put the Wine Trader's missing at eight with four crew confirmed alive, said the ship had reported several explosions at about 7 a.m. local time while sailing from Tunisia to Romania, and said nearby ships reported it was hit by two drones. The differing tallies reflect a rescue effort still under way at publication time. Romania's interior ministry said it had sent two Black Hawk helicopters and two ships with medical staff, but that very big waves meant the rescue could not yet be done safely, Reuters reported.
Who is being blamed for the strikes?
No authority had formally attributed the strikes at publication time. Dan said two air drones hit the ships, declined to say whether they were Russian, said only a few hours had elapsed and Romania was waiting for more information, and said there would be a reaction from the Romanian state, according to Reuters. Reuters also reported that Romanian officials stopped short of explicitly linking the fires to Russian drones that had strayed into Romanian airspace. The BBC reported that Russian drones were detected overnight near Ukraine's Snake Island, not far from the scene, and that Russia said two cargo ships carrying military cargo to Ukraine's port of Odesa were hit during the sea crossing, without naming the vessels; no source opened for this article established that the Russian statement referred to these two tankers.
Why does this incident matter beyond Romania?
It is the latest in a series that is moving closer to NATO territory. The incidents follow drone strikes on at least five other cargo ships near the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria over the past 10 days, in which at least 23 sailors were lost; those strikes took place just outside NATO's territorial waters, while one of Thursday's ships was inside Romania's, Reuters reported. On Tuesday, two merchant ships were struck off Bulgaria and one sank, leaving 11 crew missing; Bulgaria suspected Russia and summoned its envoy, the BBC reported. The BBC said the presidents of Romania and Bulgaria were due to discuss on Thursday whether Article 4 of the NATO treaty — which lets a member request consultations when it believes its security is threatened — should be invoked. Reuters reported that Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said EU leaders would discuss a proposed moratorium on attacks on civilian ships in the Black Sea, and that Dan and Radev would meet NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte later on Thursday. Romania's foreign minister, Oana Toiu, described the Black Sea earlier this week as a global food artery and, in Reuters' reporting, as currently the deadliest sea for sailor casualties in recent months.
This is not financial advice. The missing-crew figures are published as reported by Reuters and the BBC at different points on Thursday, with the difference stated in the text; attribution of the strikes is presented only as the officials and outlets cited reported it, and no party had been formally accused by Romania at publication time.
