A drone hit and sank a cargo vessel in the Black Sea on Friday, killing one crew member and leaving three missing, officials said, in the latest attack on commercial shipping in the region that has raised fears of an escalation in Russia's war against Ukraine.

Romanian naval authorities said that a search and rescue mission was underway after the ship caught fire and sank about 13 nautical miles (15 miles) east of the port city of Constanta, near Romania's territorial waters.

The crew consisted of 10 Ukrainian citizens and three Azerbaijanis.