EU offers cash for Black Sea attack response

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced Monday that the EU will help finance some Black Sea security costs after attacks on commercial shipping — blamed on Russia — even as the main diplomatic push to end the crisis unfolds elsewhere.

“Threats, attacks and incursions are rising off the coasts of the Black Sea,” von der Leyen said at the start of her visit to Romania.

In response, she said the bloc will “fast track the work on the Black Sea Maritime Security Hub, with a clear timeline for completion and dedicated funding of €50 million.”

She also announced an additional €10 million in EU cash for Romania’s search-and-rescue operations. The sums are tiny compared to the €16.7 billion Romania is getting under the EU’s SAFE arms loans program.

The hub, announced last year, is a joint control center to be run by Romania and Bulgaria and is expected to be fully operational by the end of the year.

It aims to monitor maritime activity in real time and safeguard vital infrastructure such as undersea power and communication cables. It would offer both countries a unified view of the sea and sky, helping them detect threats before they strike.

Monday’s announcement follows weeks of mounting violence on the Black Sea. Since early October, at least nine ships have been struck in the exclusive economic zones of NATO and EU members Romania and Bulgaria; four were sunk, and 34 sailors are dead or missing.

Other ships have been hit off Russia’s shores.

Both Romania and Bulgaria raised the issue at last month’s meeting of EU leaders and are pressing for more security support. However, while Romania has blamed Russia, Bulgaria has stopped short. Von der Leyen is set to visit Varna, on Bulgaria’s coast, on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the U.S. is steering talks on a Black Sea ceasefire and an agreement on safe passage, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio saying Washington is reviewing proposals from Turkey forwarded in late October and is “open” to ideas from India.

An agreement would not end the conflict, Rubio said, but it would “solve a unique aspect” of it by easing the spillover on food security for vulnerable nations.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said on Oct. 21 that the bloc is working with Turkey, India and food-importing countries in Africa and other regions on a freedom-of-navigation deal. Ukraine has agreed to such an arrangement, she added, but Russia has rejected it.

Von der Leyen said the EU backs Ukraine’s call for a Black Sea ceasefire, referring to “the peace talks taking place in Abu Dhabi tomorrow with European presence.”

Commission chief spokesperson Paula Pinho gave no details on the proposals or the EU’s role. She noted a “common interest” in resolving disruptions, but declined to comment on the intentions of Turkey or the U.S.

Asked whether he foresaw a possible breakthrough this week, Ukraine’s Agriculture Minister Taras Vysotskyi was pessimistic. He said that Kyiv is “preparing to keep our farmers operating without access to the deep-water Black Sea ports for the long term.”

The Black Sea matters to both sides in the war.

The ports of Ukraine’s Greater Odesa region are main channels for its exports, including steel, iron ore and grain, and they bring in billions of dollars. Several ships hit in EU waters were carrying Ukrainian grain.

Most of Russia’s grain exports also leave through Black Sea ports such as Novorossiysk, a major oil export hub, along with Tuapse.

Other countries are deeply invested, too. Near Novorossiysk, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal, partly owned by U.S. oil giants Chevron and Exxon, handles about 80% of Kazakhstan’s crude exports.

Turkey has suffered the most ship attacks, and tankers headed for Georgia have also come under fire.

Agnes Rønberg contributed reporting.