Türkiye Calls for Black Sea Truce as Drone Incidents Raise Regional Tensions
Fidan warns attacks have expanded from military targets to commercial shipping as a drone explosion near Bulgaria's border raises fresh security concerns
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Türkiye's Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan on Saturday called for a temporary halt to attacks by Russia and Ukraine in the Black Sea, warning that the conflict is increasingly threatening civilian shipping and regional security.
Fidan called for the establishment of a mechanism that would allow a "moratorium" on attacks in the Black Sea, saying the conflict had expanded beyond military targets to commercial vessels.
"The conflict has spread across the whole Black Sea," Fidan said in an interview with Türkiye's state-run Anadolu Agency.
"To begin with, they targeted the ports and the military ships. Now, they are attacking all commercial shipping without distinction," he said, adding that vessels belonging to Türkiye or flying the Turkish flag had also been targeted.
His remarks came after a series of incidents involving drones and civilian vessels in and around the Black Sea, raising concerns about the growing risks to maritime traffic and NATO members bordering the waterway.
Türkiye on Tuesday condemned drone attacks on two Turkish civilian vessels a day earlier, with some crew members reportedly injured.
Drone explodes near Bulgaria-Türkiye gas route
Meanwhile, Ukraine on Saturday denied intentionally targeting Bulgaria after a drone carrying explosives exploded near the strategic Trans-Balkan gas pipeline linking Türkiye and Ukraine, close to Bulgaria's border with Romania.
Bulgaria's Defense Ministry said the drone was a type "widely used by the Ukrainian military," prompting Foreign Minister Georg Georgiev to summon Ukraine's ambassador for a meeting on Monday, according to the foreign ministry.
Kyiv said it was in close contact with Bulgarian authorities to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.
"We can say with certainty that the Ukrainian Armed Forces did not intentionally direct any assets toward Bulgaria," Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhyi said, while blaming "Russia's invasion" for the broader circumstances that led to the incident.
The drone exploded near the Kardam border crossing with Romania in northeastern Bulgaria, around 1,000 meters from a compressor station serving the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said.
No casualties were reported.
Radev said the drone was carrying a "significant amount of explosives," while Bulgaria's Defense Ministry said an analysis of the debris had so far found no evidence that the incident was deliberate.
The drone eventually crashed into a sunflower field, according to Radev.
Growing drone threat
Romanian border police detected the sound of the drone before Bulgarian border police observed an explosion accompanied by black smoke, Radev said following an emergency meeting of the country's security council.
He added that neither Bulgaria nor Romania had detected the drone before the explosion, highlighting the difficulties NATO countries face in identifying and intercepting small unmanned aircraft.
"Identifying and neutralizing these drones poses a major challenge," Radev said.
Drone incidents have become increasingly frequent across eastern European NATO countries since Russia launched its full-scale military operations in Ukraine in February 2022.
Romania has repeatedly reported Russian drone incursions and debris falling on its territory, including incidents near the country's border with Ukraine. In late July, Bucharest ordered the expulsion of a Russian embassy staff member.
Following the latest incident, Radev said Bulgaria had strengthened surveillance and would redeploy personnel and military units along its borders to improve drone detection and deploy counter-drone measures.
Black Sea tensions spread beyond Ukraine
Bulgaria, Romania and Türkiye all border the Black Sea, which has increasingly become a major theater of drone warfare between Russia and Ukraine.
The escalation has also raised concerns about civilian maritime traffic, particularly after recent attacks involving commercial vessels.
Fidan's call for a moratorium reflects Türkiye's broader concern that the expansion of attacks into commercial shipping could create a wider regional security and economic crisis.
Bulgaria suspended military aid to Ukraine in June, with Radev saying the country should not be part of the coalition supplying weapons to Kyiv and instead advocating diplomatic efforts to end the war.
Further west, Germany also reported drone activity near sensitive military infrastructure.
A German military operational command spokesman told AFP on Saturday that drones had been detected this week over an army facility in western Germany that houses a large underground weapons depot.
The Mechernich site contains, among other equipment, components for US-made Patriot air-defense systems sought by Ukraine.
The sightings came days after an explosives-laden drone was discovered near a Ukrainian cargo aircraft at Leipzig-Halle Airport, a key hub for the transportation of military equipment by Germany and NATO allies.