The two oil tankers, Kairos and Virat, damaged by Ukrainian naval drones in the Black Sea, were previously flagged in Gambia. However, in 2025, that country officially revoked the registration of 72 vessels, deeming their flags counterfeit. Earlier, in July, the Comoros Islands made a similar decision regarding 62 tankers.

Thus, both attacked vessels became "no man's land"—without nationality or right of passage through the Bosphorus under the Montreux Convention. According to the SBU, the operation using Sea Baby drones disabled the Kairos (completely burned) and the Virat (suffering critical damage to the engine room).

Turkish authorities have expressed concern about incidents in their exclusive economic zone and are likely to strengthen controls on maritime vessels.