Traffic through the Bosphorus is 50% lower than at the same time last year, Svetlin Stoyanov, chair of the board of the Bulgarian National Association for Shipbuilding and Ship Repair, told BNT.
The figures are preliminary and come from satellite monitoring.
The association wants attacks on merchant ships in the Black Sea to stop. "They threaten not only the environment in the region, which is getting worse every day, but also amount to an effective blockade of Bulgarian ports," Stoyanov said.
He said the first step must be more active Bulgarian diplomacy at international level. The association expects the state, the president's office and the prime minister to keep up their efforts and raise the issue with the EU, NATO and the International Maritime Organization.
The industry also proposes an EU scheme to compensate countries hit by the fighting. The association says ships that come into Bulgarian territorial waters and ports should also get insurance support.
Bulgaria still has no search and rescue vessel. Stoyanov believes a long time has passed since the state last decided to meet its obligation and provide one. He said steps were taken, but frequent changes of ministries and of the ministers in charge slowed the process. A new procedure is now under way.
"We hope it will be announced soon, so that Bulgaria finally has a search and rescue vessel, which it should have had long ago," Stoyanov said.