Türkiye’s Foreign Ministry denounced attacks on two Turkish-owned civilian cargo vessels in the Black Sea and called on Russia and Ukraine both to guarantee the safety of commercial navigation, after drones struck the ships near the Russian port of Novorossiysk late on August 3rd.
The Nadezhda was hit roughly 20 nautical miles off Novorossiysk while sailing between that port and Samsun, on Türkiye’s Black Sea coast.
Its master, Yalçın Şahin, said six or seven drones struck the ship. Fire broke out; the bow and the crew quarters were damaged. Of the 22 aboard, 13 were Turkish nationals, and three are in critical condition. Russian vessels rescued the crew.
No party has claimed the attack, and Ankara has not assigned responsibility publicly.
Türkiye is a member of NATO, holds the Montreux Convention authority over the Turkish Straits, and has spent the war positioning itself as a party both belligerents will talk to.
