Erdogan: Attacks on Black Sea merchant ships are unacceptable

(Patria) - Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated on Monday that attacks on commercial ships in the Black Sea are unacceptable, issuing a warning to "all relevant parties" after an unmanned vessel allegedly hit a tanker off Turkey's northern coast, Reuters reported.

"The war between Russia and Ukraine has clearly begun to threaten the safety of navigation in the Black Sea. The attacks on vessels in our exclusive economic zone on Friday signal a worrying escalation," Erdogan told reporters.

"We cannot justify these attacks in any way," he said.

"We are conveying the necessary warnings to all relevant parties regarding such incidents."

Turkey announced on Saturday that the tanker Virat, part of Russia's so-called shadow fleet, was hit by an unmanned vessel late on Friday about 56 kilometers off Turkey's Black Sea coast.

It was not immediately clear who was behind the reported attacks, Reuters said.