President Nicușor Dan and his Bulgarian counterpart, Iliana Iotova, call for stronger measures against drones following attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea

Romania and Bulgaria will cooperate to promote stronger measures to counter drones at the level of the European Union and NATO, following the recent attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea. President Nicușor Dan announced on Wednesday that he had spoken by phone with his Bulgarian counterpart, Iliana Iotova, about the incidents affecting navigation and infrastructure in the region.

According to the Romanian head of state, the drone attacks are direct consequences of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. He warned that they endanger both commercial navigation in the Black Sea and the supply of essential agricultural products to other continents.

The discussion took place after, on Tuesday, the general cargo vessel Chelsea 3, flying the Maltese flag, was hit by an aerial drone approximately 15 nautical miles from the Bulgarian city of Byala. Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev stated that two vessels had been hit off the coast of Bulgaria, and one had sunk.

Romania and Bulgaria are now seeking to support joint measures to protect commercial navigation and counter drone threats in the Black Sea.