Ukrainian 'Drone Submarine' Attack Causes Massive Fire on Tanker Off Russian Sochi

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Ukraine struck an oil tanker off the southern coast of Russia on Tuesday evening, leading to a massive fire and a plume of black smoke that covered parts of the coastal city of Sochi.

Since the outbreak of the conflict in 2022, both sides have heavily targeted commercial shipping in the Black Sea region, while Russia has recently bombed grain ships carrying Ukrainian goods near the shores of Romania, a member of the European Union.

The Russian Ministry of Transport stated that a tanker flying the Liberian flag was attacked by "drone submarines" and that "crude oil is burning in the Black Sea waters."

It added that firefighting teams were unable to control the fire due to its intensity, but the crew of 23 Indian nationals was rescued.

The nearby beaches were temporarily closed, while authorities urged Sochi residents to keep their windows closed and avoid going outside.

The Ukrainian site "Black Sea News" lists the tanker among what is known as the Russian "shadow fleet". Earlier on Tuesday, two commercial ships off the coast of Bulgaria in the Black Sea were attacked by drones, according to Bulgarian Prime Minister Roman Radev, citing the Bulgarian news agency (BTA).

The two ships were damaged, and one of them sank. A Turkish cargo ship was also attacked and sustained damage off the Romanian coast on Monday.

Sources in Kyiv blamed the Russian military for those attacks.

Videos and photos from the city of Sochi, which has a population of about 500,000, circulated on social media, showing bright orange flames in the sea and a thick column of black smoke rising into the sky.

Ukraine says that its attacks on Russian oil infrastructure are a fair response to the intensive nighttime shelling carried out by Moscow on its towns and cities.