The Black Sea has become the world's deadliest shipping lane for merchant mariners, with more than 570 vessels damaged and at least 40 seafarers killed this year.

The Black Sea has become the world's deadliest shipping lane for merchant mariners, with more than 570 vessels damaged and at least 40 seafarers killed this year.

The death toll exceeds the 24 sailors killed in the Strait of Hormuz at the same time.

Attacks increased in the third quarter, with about 387 ships hit between July and September, more than four a day, after Ukraine launched a crackdown on ships linked to Russia and Russia stepped up attacks on ships bound for Ukrainian ports.

Embry estimates that Russia has been responsible for about 90% of the attacks on shipping over the past 45 days, using drones, drones loaded with explosives and missiles.

The attacks have spread to the waters of NATO members Romania and Bulgaria, where the Comoros-flagged Khorib capsized after a drone attack off Constanta on Friday, killing one sailor and leaving three missing. Greater Odessa ports handled fewer than 10 ships last month compared to about 400 in July, as shipowners describe calls to Ukrainian ports as "almost suicidal" and war risk insurance premiums rise.

Source: FT