Eight ships hit, one French aircraft, and a chart that keeps being updated

At least eight cargo ships have been hit near the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria in the past three weeks, and some 34 sailors are reported dead or missing, Reuters reports¹. Both countries are NATO members. Earlier this month Romanian F-16 pilots shot down two of the newest Russian drones over Romanian territorial waters¹.

The response, item by item. France moved an Atlantique 2 maritime patrol aircraft to the Mihail Kogălniceanu air base on 18 October; it will fly surveillance over the western Black Sea until 6 November, Romania’s defence ministry said on Tuesday¹. The purpose, in the ministry’s words, is “to identify dangers to navigation and increase the ability to protect critical infrastructure in Romania’s exclusive economic zone”¹. Romanian naval forces have stepped up patrols with ships, helicopters and drones and are “continuously updating navigators about dangers and recommended routes”¹. NATO says it will send more patrol aircraft, radar systems and drones¹.

On land, a diplomatic file. Romania’s president Nicușor Dan called an alleged Russia-coordinated sabotage plot, linked to a fire in Brașov County last month, a “grave violation” of the country’s sovereignty and security². The foreign ministry summoned Russia’s ambassador; the Russian embassy said he rejected the “baseless” accusations². Three foreign nationals, two Belarusians and a Ukrainian living in EU countries, are under investigation².

None of this is dramatic, and that is the point. A patrol plane with an end date, a list of recommended routes, a summons recorded by a ministry: these are the dull instruments that let a shipping company decide whether to sail and an insurer whether to cover it. You will hear louder words about the Black Sea this week. The checkable measure is whether the count of ships hit stops rising.