11 Crew Missing After HS Dignity Sinks Off Bulgaria; Russian Envoy Cites Possible 'Provocation by a Third Party'

Since the Oct. 6 drone attack that sank the Alfa Watan inside Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, a second ship has gone down in the same waters. Overnight on Oct. 12-13, drones hit two merchant vessels, and the HS Dignity sank 17 nautical miles (31 km) east of the village of Krapets. Eleven crew members are missing.

What Bulgaria has confirmed

The Bulgarian presidency identified the sunken ship as the HS Dignity, a Guinea-Bissau-flagged cargo vessel bound for the Romanian port of Braila.

The second vessel, the Ukrainian-owned, Malta-flagged Chelsea 3, was hit by three drones at about 1:30 a.m. local time Tuesday, Radev said. It was 18 nautical miles off Byala. All 15 crew, seven Ukrainians and eight Azerbaijanis, were rescued. Five received medical help and none was seriously hurt, according to Radev.

The count of survivors from the Dignity is not consistent. Radev said one crew member from the sunken ship was rescued. A spokeswoman for the Dobrich region gave the AFP news agency a preliminary tally of five rescued and 11 missing, and stressed the figures were not final.

Radev called the attack "absolutely unacceptable" in a televised address. He said it was "another attack in the immediate vicinity of Bulgarian territorial waters."

Who did it: no one has proven it

Radev has not named a culprit. "We lack solid, clear evidence to level accusations against any specific party; however...logic suggests the outcome works to the advantage of the Russian Federation," he wrote. He has summoned Russian ambassador Eleonora Mitrofanova.

Mitrofanova was later quoted by Bulgarian media as telling Radev she had no information from Russia's defence ministry about the latest attacks. She also said the strikes could have been a provocation by a third party.

Russia's military has not publicly commented on the Tuesday attacks. After the Oct. 6 incident, the Russian Embassy in Bulgaria denied that Russia had targeted the Alfa Watan.

Ukraine does blame Moscow. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the strike showed "Moscow's deliberate disregard for civilian lives and maritime security in the Black Sea." He added: "The Black Sea is a lifeline for global food security. Russia is attacking it to weaponise hunger and hold the world hostage."

On Oct. 6, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine's navy had checked with Bulgarian counterparts and "it has been established that this was a combined Russian attack using maritime and aerial drones." He also said Ukrainian forces had conducted no operations in the area. Zelenskyy has made no comparable statement on the Dignity in the material gathered so far.

Radev has also been dealing with a domestic angle. He took office in the summer and has rejected suggestions that he is "pro-Russian," according to the BBC.

Moscow's stated rationale

Russia has an argument on the record about shipping in the Black Sea generally. Moscow says it targets vessels delivering weapons and dual-use cargo to Ukrainian ports. It cited attacks last week on the ports of Mykolaiv and Chornomorsk, along with one at sea.

Kyiv and its European allies say the ships being hit carry grain and other civilian cargo. The Oct. 6 Alfa Watan attack also hit a Palau-flagged vessel, the Able, which was carrying grain. A Bulgarian vessel rescued all 18 crew, 11 Turkish and seven Indian nationals, and two were airlifted to Varna with serious injuries.

Ukraine is also striking Russian shipping. On Oct. 6, the same day as the first Bulgarian incident, Ukraine hit an oil tanker in the Russian Black Sea port of Sochi.

Escalation toward NATO's coast

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the Black Sea has become "another front of escalation of the Russian war in Ukraine." She added: "Those responsible should be held accountable."

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte spoke with Radev. "We have already strengthened our posture along the eastern flank and will continue to monitor the security environment, adjusting our deterrence and defence posture as needed," he wrote on X. He did not announce any specific deployment.

The toll in the sea keeps climbing. Romania reported on Monday, Oct. 12, that a grain ship had caught fire and sunk off its coast, killing one crew member and leaving one missing. Ukraine blamed Russia. The Turkish Chamber of Maritime Commerce (IMEAK) said last month that 226 civilian and commercial vessels have been attacked in the Black Sea since the war began, the vast majority this year.

Radev said the attacks complicate navigation, drive up insurance premiums and make maritime traffic "extremely difficult." He has also warned that if the war is not halted, it "will continue to expand its geographical reach and increase risks, including the risk of a global conflict."

What comes next

Bulgaria had already asked NATO and the EU for technical help investigating the Oct. 6 attacks, a sign it could not tell who was behind them. That request now covers a second sinking within a week. The search for the 11 missing sailors continues, and Bulgaria has not said what it will do if its investigators attribute the strikes to a state.