Erdogan presses Putin on Black Sea shipping safety after drone strikes on merchant vessels
Turkish President Recep Erdogan held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on 7 October to stress the safety of navigation in the Black Sea, two days after drone attacks on commercial vessels in the waters of Bulgaria and Romania killed several crew members. On 6 October, drones struck two ships in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone — ALFA WATAN, which sank, and ABLE, which caught fire — both owned by Turkish companies. President Volodymyr Zelensky attributed both attacks to Russia, and the EU said it considered the strikes unacceptable and would provide Romania and Bulgaria with satellite imagery.
Key points
- On 7 October, Turkish President Recep Erdogan held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
- Erdogan stressed the importance of safe navigation in the Black Sea and said Turkey is ready to help establish direct contacts between Russia and Ukraine.
- On 6 October, drones attacked ALFA WATAN (flag of Togo) and ABLE (flag of Palau) in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone; ALFA WATAN sank and ABLE caught fire.
- Both ships struck on 6 October belonged to Turkish companies; two people died according to the Romanian Interior Ministry.
- On 5 October, a vessel carrying grain from Ukraine to Italy was hit by drones near Romania's Pescăruș gas platform, killing at least one crew member.
- President Volodymyr Zelensky attributed both attacks to Russia and said the Ukrainian Navy contacted Bulgarian counterparts.
- The EU called the attacks on commercial vessels unacceptable and, at Romania's and Bulgaria's request, will provide them with satellite imagery of the affected sea areas.
Why it matters
A sitting NATO member state's president directly pressed the Kremlin on shipping safety after deadly strikes on commercial vessels in the waters of NATO allies Bulgaria and Romania, raising the diplomatic stakes of attacks on neutral shipping. Two drone attacks on merchant shipping in two days in the western Black Sea killed at least three crew members, expanding the war's economic and humanitarian impact on civilian lanes. All three struck vessels had Turkish ownership links, giving Ankara a direct material stake and a diplomatic opening to mediate. The EU publicly labelled the attacks unacceptable and moved to provide satellite imagery to Romania and Bulgaria, signalling a possible escalation in the Western response.
What happened
On 7 October, Turkish President Recep Erdogan held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, announced by the office of the Turkish president on X. According to the announcement, the two leaders discussed bilateral relations as well as regional and global issues, with Erdogan stressing the importance of safe navigation in the Black Sea and saying Turkey is always ready to contribute to efforts to establish direct contacts between Russia and Ukraine.
The call came in response to two drone attacks on merchant ships in consecutive days. On 5 October, near Romania's Pescăruș gas platform, the Royad Mammadov, a vessel carrying corn from Ukraine to Italy with a Turkish co-owner and crew including citizens of Azerbaijan and India, was struck by what Zelensky said were two Russian drones; the captain was among those killed and 11 crew members were rescued. Turkey's ambassador to Bucharest clarified that the ship was not under the Turkish flag and that there were no Turkish citizens aboard. On 6 October, drones attacked two more ships in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone — ALFA WATAN, sailing under the flag of Togo, which sank, and ABLE, sailing under the flag of Palau, which caught fire. Both belonged to Turkish companies. According to the Romanian Interior Ministry, two people died in the 6 October attacks, which Bulgarian media described as the first known drone strike on vessels in Bulgaria's economic zone.
President Volodymyr Zelensky publicly attributed both attacks to Russia, saying the Ukrainian Navy had contacted Bulgarian counterparts after the 6 October strike. The European Union called Russia's recent attacks on commercial vessels in the Black Sea unacceptable and, at the request of Romania and Bulgaria, said it would provide satellite imagery of the affected sea areas.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
All six sources covering the story are Ukrainian-language outlets — Європейська правда, Українська правда, Укрінформ, НВ, Суспільне Новини and hromadske. They lead with Zelensky's attribution of both attacks to Russia, foreground the strikes' impact on civilian shipping and on Ukrainian grain exports, and frame Erdogan's call as a diplomatic response to attacks on vessels linked to Turkish companies. The reports emphasise Turkey's earlier proposals to halt Black Sea hostilities and its mediating role, and highlight the EU's condemnation and provision of satellite imagery to Romania and Bulgaria as a Western response to Russian escalation at sea.
Where reporting differs
Sources disagree on the casualty count from the 5 October Royad Mammadov attack. An earlier report says at least one person was killed, while later reporting attributes two deaths — including the captain — to the strike.
Background
On 5 October, a drone struck the Royad Mammadov near the Romanian Pescăruș gas platform; Zelensky said two Russian drones were used, and the captain died while 11 crew were rescued. On 6 October, drones attacked the ALFA WATAN and ABLE in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, sinking the former and setting the latter on fire; two people died according to the Romanian Interior Ministry. Both ships struck on 6 October were owned by Turkish companies. Turkey had previously transmitted to Ukraine and Russia proposals aimed at halting hostilities and attacks in the Black Sea, and Erdogan said he had received a positive signal from the Ukrainian president on resuming grain exports through the Black Sea.