Another incident occurred in the Black Sea: the tanker Midvolga-2, which was transporting cargo from Russia to Georgia, was attacked approximately 130 km off the coast of Turkey. Despite the damage, the vessel managed to reach the Turkish city of Sinop on its own. This is already the fourth case of similar attacks on tankers transporting products from Russia in the past week.
This is reported by Business • Media
Incidents in the Black Sea and the Position of Official Kyiv
Ukraine has officially denied its involvement in the recent attack on the tanker Midvolga-2. At the same time, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan emphasized the escalation of the situation in the region and expressed concern about the safety of navigation following a series of strikes on vessels of the so-called “shadow fleet” of Russia in the Black Sea.
“Over 60% of Russian gas and oil exports pass through the Gulf of Finland. We did not say ‘don’t come here,’ but it would be wiser not to do so,” noted Tsahkna, acknowledging that Ukraine has the right to destroy military and strategic facilities on Russian territory, but international waters are a “different matter.”
International Community Reaction and Economic Consequences
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna commented on potential Ukrainian attacks on Russian ships in the Baltic Sea, warning of possible environmental risks, as a significant portion of Russian oil and gas exports passes through the Gulf of Finland. He emphasized that while Ukraine has the right to destroy strategic facilities of Russia, actions in international waters are a different issue.
Amidst attacks by Ukrainian military drones on Russian oil tankers, transportation costs for goods in the Black Sea have significantly increased. In particular, the rise in insurance premiums related to war risks has impacted the overall logistics costs in the region.
At the same time, Ukraine has imposed decade-long sanctions for the first time against 56 Russian maritime vessels that illegally entered temporarily occupied ports of Ukraine and exported Ukrainian agricultural products between 2022 and 2025. To enhance control, the State Customs Service has developed specialized software that allows customs authorities to quickly identify sanctioned entities and prevent their entry into Ukraine.
On December 2, Ukrainian strike drones attacked the oil depot “Orelnefteprodukt” in the city of Livny in the Oryol region of Russia, marking another example of targeted actions aimed at reducing the fuel capabilities of the aggressor.