Von der Leyen will visit the countries in the Black Sea region against the backdrop of deadly drone attacks. Politico. The head of the European Commission plans to visit Bulgaria and Romania next week after a series of drone attacks on shipping in the Black Sea raised tensions on NATO's eastern flank. Ursula von der Leyen is expected to visit both countries after attending a climate summit in Turkey, according to EU officials familiar with the plans. "This is now the most dangerous sea lane in the world," one official said. In October, drones attacked at least seven commercial ships in the Black Sea, killing two sailors and leaving at least 25 missing. Romania warned that the strikes were part of Moscow's escalation of aggression against Ukraine, while Bulgaria refrained from formally blaming Moscow, citing the drones as arriving "from the east." Von der Leyen's travel plans come as NATO allies step up surveillance missions over the Black Sea. Italian, British and US surveillance planes were seen flying simultaneous missions over the area, while France extended the deployment of a maritime patrol plane, Bulgarian media reported.