Fatal Attack on Cargo Ship Highlights Black Sea Shipping Risks
Recent events underscore escalating risks to Black Sea shipping.
·5 min read·Marine Insight
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A Russian attack on a cargo ship in the Black Sea killed its captain, Ukrainian authorities said on Wednesday.
The ship was sailing under the flag of Antigua and Barbuda when it was attacked on the night of Sept. 23, the Ukrainian Sea Port Authority (USPA) said.
The attack caused a fire on the ship. The Ukrainian Navy evacuated the crew and later put out the fire. The captain was a Ukrainian citizen and was killed in the attack.
Oleg Kiper, head of Ukraine’s Odesa regional administration, also confirmed the captain’s death.
Ships in the region continue to operate despite military activity, attacks on port infrastructure and restrictions on access to some areas.
At least 226 civilian and commercial vessels have been hit in the Black Sea since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, according to Turkey’s IMEAK Chamber of Shipping.
Of those, 163 attacks, or about 70%, happened in the first eight months of this year, the chamber said.
Russia and Ukraine have also been targeting assets linked to each other’s export revenues as the war enters its fifth year.
Turkey has proposed that Russia and Ukraine stop attacking civilian vessels. So far, neither side has acted on the proposal.
Ukraine continues its campaign against vessels it links to Russia’s so-called shadow fleet. It says the fleet is used to transport sanctioned Russian oil and gas.
Major General Robert “Magyar” Brovdi, commander of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, said Ukrainian drone units had disabled 300 vessels over 11 weeks.
He said 21 tankers had been attacked and “burned” during the three days before his statement.
The campaign began in early July and has focused on merchant tankers operating in the Black Sea and Sea of Azov.
Ukrainian authorities say many of the vessels targeted are part of Russia’s shadow fleet. They describe it as a network of tankers used to carry Russian energy cargoes despite international sanctions.
Brovdi said Ukrainian forces had disabled 166 vessels in the Black Sea and 134 in the Sea of Azov. He added the Sea of Azov and the Kerch Strait were closed and would remain closed.
He also described conditions in the northern and northeastern Black Sea as a “maybe we’ll slip through” environment for shipping.
