ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Turkey’s transport minister said on Thursday that a Turkish-operated oil tanker was “specifically targeted” in the Black Sea by an “unmanned underwater vehicle,” causing an explosion in its engine room.

Earlier on Thursday, semi-official NTV broadcaster reported that the crude oil tanker M/T Altura was struck by a drone in the Black Sea, damaging its deck and engine room.

Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu, speaking on live television, described the vessel as “a foreign-flagged vessel, not Turkish-flagged, but Turkish-operated,” adding that Ankara has not yet been able to confirm the owner.

Uraloglu further stressed that the explosion reported in the engine room after midnight “was not a drone attack,” as authorities believe that an “unmanned underwater vehicle” was responsible for the attack. 

Technical teams have been dispatched to the scene and an investigation is underway, according to Uraloglu, with all 27 Turkish crew members safe. 

The vessel was loaded with crude oil from Russia. 

“For now, what we can say for more clarity is that this was an externally caused explosion,” he asserted, describing the incident as one of “great risk.” 

Turkey has been caught up in the wider US-Israel-Iran war since early March, with NATO air defenses intercepting ballistic missiles that Ankara said were fired toward Turkish airspace, although Tehran has denied targeting Turkey.

Turkey, along with several other major Gulf and regional countries, earlier in March jointly called on Iran to “immediately” halt all of its attacks and warned of their right to defend themselves.