Another tanker hit in Black Sea attacks off Turkish shores

ANKARA

A Russian-flagged tanker loaded with sunflower oil came under attack Monday in the Black Sea, some 80 nautical miles off Türkiye's coast, marking the third such incident in a week amid escalating maritime tensions.

The Directorate General of Maritime Affairs under the Transport and Infrastructure Ministry said the MIDVOLGA-2 had radioed in the strike while en route from Russia to Georgia.

The vessel, carrying 13 crew members with no reported injuries, requested no assistance and was steaming toward the northern port of Sinop for inspection.

"The MIDVOLGA-2 tanker, sailing with a cargo of sunflower oil from Russia to Georgia, reported that it had been attacked 80 miles off our shores," the directorate said in a statement.

"The crew of 13 is unharmed, and the ship is proceeding to Sinop with its engines intact."

This follows strikes last Friday on two other commercial tankers – the Gambian-flagged KAIROS and VIRAT – within Türkiye's exclusive economic zone, incidents later claimed by Ukraine as targeting vessels in Russia's "shadow fleet" to evade oil sanctions.

Coast Guard teams evacuated all 25 crew from the KAIROS in a nighttime operation after it caught fire from the blast, with rescue vessels continuing to cool the flames through the weekend.

The VIRAT, hit twice in quick succession, sustained minor starboard damage but reported no casualties among its 20-person crew, the ministry noted, with salvage units dispatched promptly.

Ankara voiced sharp concerns over the earlier attacks, warning they threaten navigation safety, lives and the environment while risking broader spillover from the Russia-Ukraine war.

The Foreign Ministry stressed ongoing talks with Kiev and Moscow to shield regional trade routes and Türkiye's interests.

No immediate claim emerged for the MIDVOLGA-2 hit, but Ukrainian sources had touted the prior drone strikes as successful blows against sanctioned shipping.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had on Monday criticised drone attacks as a "worrying escalation".

"We cannot under any circumstances accept these attacks, which threaten the safety of navigation, the environment and lives in our exclusive economic zone," he said of the initial drone attacks which took place on Friday.

"The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has clearly reached a stage where it threatens the safety of navigation in the Black Sea."