Underwater drone hits Russian shadow fleet vessel off Turkish coast

An explosion occurred on the Russian shadow fleet tanker ALTURA in the Black Sea off the coast of Turkey.

This is reported by the Turkish media NTV.

It was previously attacked by an underwater drone. The shipʼs deck and engine room were damaged.

The tanker was carrying 140 000 tons of oil from Russia. According to the State Oil Company, the ship regularly transports Russian oil to India and Georgia. The tanker is under sanctions by Ukraine, Britain, and Switzerland.

Similar incidents involving vessels carrying Russian oil have occurred before. For example, in early March, the Russian tanker “Arctic Metagaz” carrying liquefied natural gas caught fire in the Mediterranean Sea. Presumably, the cause was an attack by a naval drone. The tanker, which is part of the shadow fleet, drifted in the Mediterranean for three weeks and is now being towed to Libya.

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