Ukrainian forces have repeatedly targeted shipping, ports, and other infrastructure in and around the peninsula, which voted to join Russia in 2014.
A Turkish-flagged fishing boat sank after being attacked in the Black Sea off the coast of Crimea, killing one crew member and injuring four others, the Turkish Coast Guard said.
In a statement on X, the Coast Guard Command said the DURU 67 trailer was attacked on Friday near Sevastopol. A nearby fishing boat, BURAK KAYA, rescued five injured crew members from the sinking ship and headed for the Turkish port of Inebolu. One sailor, who was in critical condition, died during the voyage.
Following a distress call, the Coast Guard dispatched a rescue vessel carrying a medical team. The ship reached BURAK KAYA around 7:00 PM local time, 115 nautical miles north of Inebolu within the Turkish search and rescue zone.
The sailors who died and the four injured crew members were evacuated inside the ship, where they received treatment before being taken to a hospital in Kastamonu. Local health authorities said the victims suffered shrapnel injuries.
While Turkish authorities did not identify who carried out the strike, Ukrainian forces have identified it from time to time targeting ships, ports, and other infrastructure in and around Crimea since the escalation of the conflict with Russia in February 2022.
Crimea, along with the former Ukrainian regions of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson, and Zaporozhye, voted overwhelmingly to join Russia in 2014 and 2022, but Kiev and its Western backers continue to treat the territories as “connected.”
Ukrainian forces regularly target Russian oil depots, supply lines, shipping, and port infrastructure in the region, often using drones and long-range missiles supplied by the West. On Thursday, drone strikes on the peninsula, including the port city of Sevastopol, killed at least four people and wounded ten others. Two more people were injured in the strike in Sevastopol on Saturday.
Kiev has also targeted ships it claims are involved in Russian ‘shadow shipping’ – which allegedly helps Russia evade Western sanctions on oil shipments – including Turkish-flagged ships.
In March, the Turkish oil tanker Altura was reportedly hit by drones near the Bosphorus. Last month, maritime security firm Tribeca reported drone attacks on three oil tankers in the Black Sea off the northern coast of Turkey.
The Turkish government has condemned Ukraine’s attacks in the Black Sea. Foreign Ministry spokesman Oncu Keceli issued the warning last autumn after the tankers Kairos and Virat – also allegedly part of the ‘shadow fleet’ – were hit inside Turkey’s exclusive economic zone, citing the attacks. “posed a serious risk to navigation, life, property and environmental security in the area.”
Russia has condemned Ukraine’s attacks on Black Sea infrastructure and ships, calling them acts of terrorism.
