Black Sea drones: Radev and Dan meet Rutte, NATO pledges support

Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev and Romanian President Nicusor Dan met NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Brussels on Thursday following a series of drone attacks on merchant ships in the Black Sea. Bulgarian public broadcaster BNT said Romania had requested the hastily arranged meeting and that the two leaders left the EU summit to see Rutte at his residence.

NATO will continue to work closely with its allies in the Black Sea, Rutte said, according to BNT. Radev thanked Rutte on X for a clear signal that Black Sea security is eastern flank security, the BTA news agency reported. He said NATO was monitoring the situation and was ready to help Bulgaria and Romania bolster counter-drone and maritime surveillance capabilities.

Bulgaria also plans to call at the summit for a moratorium on strikes on commercial ships in the Black Sea, and Radev announced a joint initiative with Romania’s president. He said there was no clear evidence of who was behind the strikes but that the logic pointed to Moscow, according to BNT. Bulgarian media reported that draft summit conclusions describe the incidents in the two countries’ exclusive economic zones as a serious violation of international law. No decision had been announced.