Burning cargo ship capsizes off Constanța: one dead, three missing, and Bucharest blames Moscow

The cargo ship Khoryv, sailing under the flag of the Comoros, was heading from Turkey to the Romanian port of Sulina. On October 23, at around 10 am local time, some 13 nautical miles east of Constanța, a fire broke out on board. The ship was badly damaged and capsized, in immediate danger of sinking.

Of the 13 crew members - ten Ukrainian and three Azerbaijani nationals - ten were pulled out by another merchant ship that happened to be nearby. Nine are alive, one is dead. Three are still listed as missing, and a helicopter couldn't join the search because of bad weather and poor visibility.

Romanian authorities have not officially said what caused the fire. Several local media outlets reported that the ship was hit by drones. President Nicușor Dan didn't wait for the investigation to end before naming the context: "The latest incident with a ship in the Black Sea is part of Russia's escalation in that region," he said.

Khoryv isn't the first. In October alone, drones attacked at least seven cargo ships off the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria, both NATO members. Two people died in those attacks, and at least 25 are still listed as missing. On Saturday, Romanian pilots shot down two drones in Romania's territorial waters in the Black Sea.

When something happens this often, is it still an "incident"? Attacks in the two countries' exclusive economic zones threaten an important international shipping route and fuel fears that Russia's war in Ukraine is spilling over into neighbouring waters.

This isn't a distant war. Bulgaria, whose coast is washed by the Black Sea, is our neighbour. Will NATO's response stop at downed drones and statements, while rescuers search the cold sea for three missing sailors?