On Wednesday, December 10, Ukrainian naval drones struck a tanker from Russia’s “ghost fleet,” as the vessel was sailing in Ukraine’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea.
The Dashan tanker was sailing at maximum speed, with its transponders turned off, and was critically damaged during the attack in which powerful explosions occurred at its stern, a representative of the Ukrainian Security Service stated, according to Agerpres.
“The ghost fleet” of Russia consists of tankers and cargo ships that Moscow uses to circumvent the economic sanctions imposed by the West in the context of the war in Ukraine.
At the end of November, two Russian tankers suffered mysterious explosions in the Black Sea, near the Bosphorus Strait, followed by onboard fires, and Turkish authorities launched rescue operations for the crews on the ships.
In recent years, there have been incidents in the Black Sea where ships have hit floating mines, and some mines have been found drifting at sea. Turkish authorities and NATO are monitoring these dangers, and maritime traffic through the Bosphorus Strait has continued, according to the Tribeca agency.