Maritime patrols beyond the 12-nautical-mile territorial waters of Türkiye, Bulgaria and Romania would, under current conditions, be the best way to prevent further Russian attacks on vessels in the Black Sea, according to Andrii Klymenko, an expert with the monitoring group of the Institute for Black Sea Strategic Studies.
“For several years, we have been saying the obvious: only maritime patrols by a naval group from these three countries outside their 12-mile zones could prevent this,” he wrote on Facebook on Tuesday, following attacks on three vessels owned by Turkish companies on October 5–6, two of which sank.
According to Klymenko, all three vessels targeted in the attacks belong to Turkish owners or operators, while the Royad Mammadov and Alfa Watan are linked to the same company, Spring Marine Denizcilik.
The expert also noted that the October 6 attack was the first known case of merchant vessels being struck within Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
In his view, despite the clear desire of Türkiye, Bulgaria and Romania to push the war at sea back towards Ukraine’s shores, “you can’t put the toothpaste back in the tube.”
Klymenko recalled that exercises simulating such patrols had taken place “a couple of times a year” in Romanian territorial waters. He believes that genuine maritime patrols will now have to be introduced, particularly because Romania has gas platforms within its EEZ.
