Drone Attack Against the ANT Gem (2026)

The ANT Ship Drone Attack was an incident that occurred on the night of 28 May 2026 in the Black Sea, off the coast of Ukraine’s Odessa port. The Turkish-owned dry cargo ship ANT, flying the flag of Vanuatu, was struck by a Russian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) while sailing in Ukraine’s maritime export corridor. A fire broke out on board and two Turkish citizens were injured.

^{Vanuatu-flagged Cargo Ship (Anadolu Agency)}

ANT is a general cargo vessel with a capacity of 5,095 DWT. Built in 2006, it sails under the flag of Vanuatu and is owned by a company based in Türkiye. Records indicate that ANT regularly operated in the Black Sea and made periodic calls at Ukrainian ports prior to the incident.

In May 2023, the vessel sustained damage to its bow after colliding with another cargo ship in the eastern Aegean near Türkiye, an incident in which the Greek Coast Guard intervened.

ANT was attacked on 28 May 2026, Thursday, one day after three other vessels were targeted by unmanned aerial vehicles in the Black Sea near Sinop, according to the shipping agency Tribeca. The empty tanker James II, flying the flag of Palau, was en route approximately 80 km north of the town of Türkeli at the time of the attack. The empty tankers Altura, flying the flag of Sierra Leone, and Velora were targeted while engaged in ship-to-ship operations in the vicinity. Tribeca reported that coast guard vessels had arrived at the scene and that the crews were unharmed. No group claimed responsibility for the attacks, and no official statement was issued by Turkish authorities.

It is known that all three vessels were listed on Western sanctions regimes against Russia. Altura appears on the lists of the European Union and the United Kingdom; Velora is listed by the EU, the UK, Canada, Switzerland and Ukraine; and James II has been on the UK and Ukrainian sanctions lists since 2025. The vessels Altura and Velora are reported to be owned by Pergamon Maritime, a company based in Türkiye. Records show that the tanker Altura was also targeted by unmanned vehicles in March 2026.

The attack occurred on the night of 28 May 2026 in Ukraine’s Black Sea export corridor. In an official statement published on its Telegram channel, the Ukrainian Navy reported that a Russian kamikaze-style unmanned aerial vehicle deliberately targeted the dry cargo ship ANT.

ANT was en route from a port in the Odessa region to Türkiye carrying dry cargo at the time of the attack; the nature of the cargo has not been disclosed to the public. The Ukrainian Navy confirmed that the vessel was loaded during the incident.

The UAV struck the ship’s superstructure, triggering a fire. Published photographs show damage to the bridge and upper deck areas. Coordinated intervention by the Ukrainian Search and Rescue Service and Ukrainian Navy units quickly brought the fire under control; one source indicated that the crew extinguished the fire themselves. The two injured crew members were evacuated from the ship by Ukrainian Navy boats and transported to a medical facility. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba also confirmed that the ANT was being towed for repairs.

In its statement following the attack, the Ukrainian Navy stated: “Our enemies launched a UAV attack during the night on the dry cargo ship ANT, flying the flag of Vanuatu, carrying cargo from a port in the Odessa region to Türkiye. The ship is owned by Türkiye.” The same statement added: “The Russian Federation continues to deliberately threaten international maritime transport by targeting civilian infrastructure and commercial vessels.”

^{Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksii Kuleba} (Anadolu Agency)

Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba announced via Telegram that three foreign-flagged commercial vessels had been targeted in Ukraine’s maritime corridor that night. The Ukrainian State Maritime Administration confirmed that the attacked ships flew the flags of Vanuatu, the Comoros Islands and Panama. Kuleba identified the Vanuatu-flagged vessel as the Turkish-owned cargo ship ANT and emphasized Ukraine’s continued commitment to operating its maritime corridor and supporting global food security.

On 29 May 2026, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Türkiye officially confirmed the attack in a written statement. The ministry reported that a Turkish-owned, Vanuatu-flagged vessel carrying dry cargo from Odessa port in Ukraine to Türkiye had been targeted by a UAV on 28 May, resulting in minor injuries to two Turkish crew members. It was also stated that the health status of the injured citizens was being closely monitored by Türkiye’s Consulate General in Odessa.

The ministry expressed its concerns regarding escalating tensions in the Black Sea as follows: “Our concerns about the risks and threats posed by the war-related escalation observed recently in the Black Sea, as well as the potential negative impacts on Türkiye, have been communicated at all levels to all parties concerned.” The ministry reiterated its call to avoid steps that could lead to uncontrolled escalation, stating: “Our calls for the preservation of the safety of civilian shipping in the Black Sea and for the peaceful resolution of the conflict through negotiations remain valid.” It also emphasized that Türkiye is prepared to develop “regionally grounded and results-oriented measures” to prevent escalation and accelerate the peace process.

^{Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Öncü Keçeli}(Anadolu Agency)

Following an attack that occurred in March 2026 within Türkiye’s Exclusive Economic Zone in the Black Sea, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Öncü Keçeli described the incident as “in violation of international law” and stated that Türkiye had met the attack in the Black Sea with “grave concern.”

NATO condemned the same night’s incident in which a Russian UAV violated Romanian airspace and struck the roof of an apartment building near Constanța. Romanian authorities described the event as a “serious and irresponsible escalation.” The Bucharest government summoned the Russian Ambassador to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and declared the Consul General in Constanța persona non grata, leading to the closure of the consulate. Romania also requested the urgent provision of anti-UAV systems from its NATO allies.