Azerbaijanis killed on bombed ships – Why is the Black Sea turning into a graveyard?

The “Royad Mammadov” cargo ship, which had Azerbaijani citizens on board, came under a drone attack while carrying grain from Ukraine to Italy in a zone of military operations in the Black Sea. The incident occurred on October 5 in the Black Sea, near the coast of Romania.

The Turkish-flagged “Royad Mammadov”, owned by the Palmali group of companies of Azerbaijani businessman Mubariz Mansimov, was reportedly targeted by a drone because it was operating in a high-risk maritime zone where the Russia-Ukraine war and active military operations are ongoing.

The drone strike caused a concealed fire, while the ship’s bridge and galley were destroyed. As a result of the attack, Azerbaijani citizen Rustam Hasanov, the ship’s captain, was killed, while another Azerbaijani sailor went missing. Several crew members were injured and taken to hospital.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan called on citizens to refrain from traveling along risky routes in areas of military operations.

Several incidents in recent times involving attacks on cargo ships carrying Azerbaijani citizens in the Black Sea have once again brought the security situation in the region to the forefront.

But how should the repeated nature of these incidents be assessed? Are the risks faced by vessels carrying Azerbaijani citizens merely accidental, or are there more specific factors at play?

Speaking to TodayPress TV, political analyst Bakir Hasanbayli said that attacks on civilian cargo ships in the Black Sea carrying Azerbaijani sailors are a direct consequence of the Russia-Ukraine war and military tensions in the Black Sea basin. He believes that these attacks are not specifically targeting Azerbaijan:

“Our sailors face this danger because they work as crew members or captains on civilian foreign vessels. However, there are reasons behind such attacks, and there are factors at play behind the scenes. The parties to the war, particularly Russia, view commercial vessels leaving Ukrainian ports or heading toward them as military targets. Russia targets these vessels with drones and missiles in order to strike Ukraine’s economy and agricultural exports. Most of the vessels carrying Azerbaijani sailors are engaged in international logistics and cargo transportation. For example, ships such as the ‘TEDY’ and ‘Royad Mammadov’, which were attacked recently and on which Azerbaijani sailors were killed, were carrying grain and other products from Ukrainian ports to Europe. Both the Ukrainian coast of the Black Sea and the neutral waters near Romania and Bulgaria have now become active military operation zones. The parties to the war carry out drone strikes even on vessels operating in neutral waters, without distinguishing between them, due to intelligence errors or with the aim of completely paralyzing civilian shipping.

“Following these tragic incidents, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry issued an official statement calling on citizens and sailors to refrain from working on vessels operating on Black Sea routes where military operations are taking place and the security situation is unstable, as well as from traveling to these areas. It can therefore be concluded that drone attacks on civilian vessels carrying Azerbaijani citizens in their crews in the Black Sea are not accidental, but are a direct consequence of the active military operations and military strategy in the Russia-Ukraine war. However, these attacks are not specifically directed against the Azerbaijani state or Azerbaijani sailors.”

According to the analyst, the objective is to restrict Ukraine’s economic capabilities and put pressure on global supply chains by creating risks for civilian shipping:

“When justifying such strikes, the Russian Defense Ministry frequently claims that foreign civilian vessels heading toward Ukrainian ports are secretly carrying military-purpose cargo and weapons. For this reason, vessels operating in neutral waters are considered ‘potential military targets’ and are deliberately struck by drones. The vessels that are hit do not belong to the Azerbaijani state; they are mostly foreign commercial vessels sailing under the flags of Somalia, the Marshall Islands, Saint Kitts and Nevis, or Türkiye. Azerbaijani sailors and captains work on these vessels individually under international contracts. The forces operating the drones do not determine in advance which countries’ citizens are on board when striking a vessel; they target the vessel itself based on its route.”

Giymat Mahir