Near Romanian Shores, Turkish Cargo Ship Strikes Mine
On October 5th, the Turkish-flagged cargo ship Kafkametler encountered a mine explosion in the Black Sea near the Romanian coast. According to Reuters, the vessel sustained minor damage, and the crew is safe.
The ship struck a maritime mine about 11 nautical miles north of Sulina, Romania, near the entrance to the Sulina Channel, a strategic waterway connecting the Black Sea to the Danube River and a key artery for grain trade with Ukraine. The incident occurred at 09:20 UTC when the ship dropped anchor briefly after the explosion to assess damage, and it resumed its journey at 12:10.
A source within the Ukrainian government confirmed that the ship hit a mine, suggesting it was likely a World War II-era mine or beach mines left there from the previous year, declining further comments.
Yoruk Isik, the head of the consulting firm Bosphorus Observer, told Reuters that the Kafkametler suffered minor damage to its ballast tank. By 21:20 UTC, the vessel had anchored in the Danube Canal near the Ukrainian terminal of Vylkove.
This incident marked one of the first maritime mine encounters in the Black Sea in several months, prompting insurers to designate the Black Sea region as a high-risk zone.
Recall that in July, Russia withdrew from a UN-backed agreement that allowed Ukraine to ship grain through a safe waterway. Since then, Ukraine established a temporary "humanitarian corridor" for cargo ships, and several vessels left Ukrainian Black Sea ports in August.
On Wednesday, the British government cited intelligence data, suggesting that Russia may deploy maritime mines to target civilian shipping in the Black Sea, including placing them near Ukrainian ports.
On Thursday, the company Ambrey stated that the incident occurred on the same day they informed their clients about the possible deployment of additional Russian naval mines to disrupt grain exports from Ukraine. Russia has previously targeted Ukraine's port infrastructure for grain exports, aiming to damage its agrarian economy.