SINGAPORE — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen pledged €50 million ($56 million) on Tuesday to help Bulgaria and Romania expedite the launch of a Black Sea maritime security hub following a string of deadly drone attacks on cargo ships.
At least nine cargo ships were hit by naval drones near NATO members Romania and Bulgaria last month, killing several seafarers and leaving others missing. The attacks have raised concerns that the escalating maritime conflict between Russia and Ukraine is becoming a major challenge for NATO in the Black Sea.
NATO said it would deploy maritime patrol aircraft, radars and drones to strengthen its eastern flank in the Black Sea. Bulgaria and Romania also plan to jointly establish an EU-mandated maritime security hub to improve information-sharing and bolster security along a waterway vital to trade, energy and food supplies from Ukraine.
Speaking in the Bulgarian port city of Varna, von der Leyen said all sides had agreed to accelerate the hub’s launch to restore freedom of navigation in the Black Sea. “It is important to have it now up and running and therefore we want to have clear timelines for its completion and we want to offer a dedicated funding of 50 million euros to this Black Sea maritime security hub,” she said at a press conference alongside Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev.
Bucharest has accused Russia of “systematic” strikes on civilian ships but has not attributed individual attacks, citing the need for forensic evidence. Sofia has not blamed Russia, though it said some attacks appear to benefit Moscow. Russia has denied involvement in the attacks.