The European Parliament calls for a naval mission in the Black Sea

Following attacks on at least six merchant ships by drones in the Black Sea over the past ten days, with an estimated death toll of around 30, the European Parliament has voted to call on the Commission and the Council of the European Union to consider the possibility of a naval operation in the area.

The resolution, approved by an overwhelming majority (432 votes in favour, 52 against and 88 abstentions), marks a significant shift in the EU’s approach to conflict management, as it could deploy its forces to defend not only its borders but also the exclusive economic zones of its member states. In this specific case, those of Romania and Bulgaria, two countries whose political clout in this chess match is by no means negligible. Romania, as is well known, was the scene in 2024 of an alleged hybrid operation aimed at influencing the elections and has now found a staunch ally in George Simion, leader of the Alliance for Romanians party, which is currently in opposition but enjoys immense popularity.

Bulgaria, on the other hand, following a long period of political instability, is now led by the former President of the Republic, Rumen Radev, who resigned to take up the post of Prime Minister. Radev, whilst not as openly pro-Russian as Simion, is at the very least very cool towards Kyiv. This coolness has prevented him from taking a clear stand against Moscow, even in the face of the attacks in the Black Sea: he has confined himself to summoning the ambassador and stating that he has reason to suspect the attacks were of Russian origin. Nothing more.

For this reason, the European Parliament, in its resolution, expresses “concern at the Bulgarian government’s ambiguous handling of the Russian threat” and deplores “Sofia’s weak diplomatic response to Russia”. It also calls on the Prime Minister to “match the allies’ calls for solidarity with concrete actions” and, above all, not to further delay joining the NATO initiative against low-altitude drones, the deadline for which is 30 October.

In this context, however, it is by no means certain that Sofia will dare to speak out against Moscow, at least until Sunday’s presidential election. The post is currently held on an interim basis by Radev’s former deputy, Iliana Iotova, who is leading in the polls but may, in the second round, need the votes of the pro-Russian Renaissance party, which is currently polling at 5 per cent.