Turkish leader: Strikes on Russian tankers in Black Sea indicate "alarming escalation"

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has described the latest attack on Russian vessels from the "shadow fleet" in the Black Sea as an alarming escalation to the situation. Moscow has used the fleet to circumvent Western restrictions on its energy sector imposed since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Source: European Pravda, citing Turkish news agency Anadolu

Details: After a Turkish government meeting, Erdoğan said that the war between Russia and Ukraine has reached a level that openly jeopardises shipping security in the Black Sea.

Quote from Erdoğan: "Attacks on merchant ships in our exclusive economic zone indicate an alarming escalation of the situation. We cannot in any way justify these attacks, which jeopardise the safety of shipping, human lives and the environment, especially in our exclusive zone."

Background:

• Two sanctioned tankers were reported to have caught fire on Friday in the Black Sea off the coast of Türkiye as a result of external strikes. Sources told Ukrainska Pravda that it was a special operation by the Security Service of Ukraine.
• The sources say Sea Baby maritime drones operated by the Security Service struck two sanctioned oil tankers, KAIRO and VIRAT, in the Black Sea. Turkish officials initially suggested that the ships might have been hit by missiles or drones.
• According to OpenSanctions, the US placed the VIRAT tanker under sanctions in January, after which the EU, Switzerland, the UK and Canada adopted similar measures. The EU sanctioned the KAIROS tanker in July, followed in turn by the UK and Switzerland.

Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!