Debris of a drone has been found on board the Chelsea-3, the merchant vessel attacked in Bulgaria’s Black Sea exclusive economic zone on October 13, Transport Minister Georgi Peev told reporters on October 20.
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Peev said that the debris would be analysed by Bulgarian services, and if they do not have the technical capacity, partner organisations that have experience in such investigations would be approached.
“When we are ready with the results, the public will be informed,” he said
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The Chelsea-3 is in port in Bourgas, having been towed in an operation complicated by the severe damage to the ship, including breaches of its hull.
The Roumen Radev government has refused to apportion blame for the attacks on vessels in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone, saying that it wants proof of the origin of the drones.
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In a separate announcement, Bulgaria’s Defence Ministry said on October 19 that in connection with the additional security measures being taken by the ministry along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, the Bulgarian army is using drones to enhance surveillance of the coast and the adjacent air and sea space.
The activities are part of the preventive measures to increase security and provide timely information about the situation in the area, the ministry said.
“In this regard, the Ministry of Defence informs citizens that observed drone flights along the Black Sea coast may be related to the implementation of enhanced surveillance tasks,” it said.
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A US Navy Boeing P-8A Poseidon carried out a mission over the western Black Sea on October 18, Italian website italmilradar said. The aircraft arrived in Varna on Sunday afternoon after taking off from the US Naval Air Station in Sigonella.
The aircraft’s continued low-altitude activity is more typical of maritime patrol than a mission focused primarily on electronic reconnaissance, although its exact mission cannot be confirmed based on flight tracking data alone, the website said.
European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, speaking on October 20 in the European Parliament in Strasbourg at the start of a debate on the scalation of Russian strikes in the EU, particularly on Black Sea shipping, threatening human life, regional stability and food security, said that
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Russia is not winning on the battlefield in Ukraine:
“Instead, Putin is blatantly targeting civilians and stepping up hybrid attacks in the rest of Europe.”
On Saturday, Romanian F-16 fighter jets shot down two drones over Romanian territorial waters. If the drones had not been intercepted, they could have hit potential targets, caused more destruction and killed more people on European soil, Kallas said.
Six attacks in 10 days by suspected Russian drones marks a dangerous and unacceptable escalation in the Black Sea. Rescuers are still searching for the seven sailors missing after the drone attack on two tankers near Romania’s Black Sea coast, she said.
Since mid-July, Russia has intensified its attacks on Ukraine’s export routes, Kallas said. Ukraine is losing an estimated 60 million euro a day in export revenues.
“As Member States underlined at the European Council last week, Russia is intentionally weaponizing food and undermining global food security, in particular in Africa, Asia and the Middle East,” Kallas said.
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To avoid further deterioration of the situation, the European Council calls for the immediate restoration of safe passage for civilian shipping, merchant and commercial vessels in the Black Sea, she said.
Kallas said that Russia’s actions make it harder to put food on people’s plates across the world.
It requires a strong and united European response on three fronts, she said.
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“First, we work to keep Ukraine connected to global markets and protect food security,” Kallas said.
“That is also why we have to strengthen security along the Black Sea and Danube. That’s my second point.
“And the third point, we keep working on the diplomatic front to increase international pressure,” she said.
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“We are now working with international partners, with Türkiye, India and others, including food-importing countries in Africa and more broadly the Global South, to push for a freedom of navigation arrangement in the Black Sea,” Kallas said.
A Black Sea arrangement would protect lives and vital supplies. Ukraine has proposed it. Russia has rejected it. This is why, again, diplomatic engagement must go hand in hand with sustained pressure on Moscow and support for Ukraine, she told MEPs.
The European Parliament is to vote on October 22 on a resolution on Russia’s attacks on civilian shipping in the Black Sea.
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(Photo: Transport Ministry)
Drone debris found on Chelsea-3 ship attacked in Bulgaria’s Black Sea EEZ 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-20 09:43:22
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