Explosion damages cargo ship near Ukraine-Romania border

The crew of a cargo ship sailing across the Black Sea was rescued and evacuated to the Romanian port of Sulina, near the border with Ukraine, after the ship was damaged by an explosion, the Romanian authorities said on Wednesday. The cause of the explosion remains unknown. Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu suggested that the ship could have been damaged by a mine, but did not offer any evidence for the claim.Since the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February last year, both countries have littered the Black Sea with explosive devices.
Romania's transport and infrastructure minister, Sorin Grindeanu, said that there were two hypotheses for what could have caused the damage: a sea mine or an explosion in the engine room. Ciolacu said that the hypothesis about the mine was "closer to the truth", but he did not elaborate. Earlier in the day, Romanian media reported that Cosmin Dumitrache, the head of the Romanian Naval Authority, had said that there were "no concrete indications that a mine could be the cause" of the explosion. Investigations about the cause of the explosion were ongoing.
Russia and Ukraine have escalated their fight in the Black Sea in recent months, drawing the war closer to Romania, a member of the Nato. Russia has targeted Ukrainian ports and grain facilities on the Danube, just across the river from Romania, and Ukraine has battled to control strategic oil and gas platforms in the northwestern part of the Black Sea, a few dozen miles off the Romanian coast. The fighting has raised fears that it could drag Nato into a direct military confrontation with Moscow.
Earlier this month, debris from suspected Russian drones was found on Romanian territory, following attacks on nearby Ukrainian ports.