Russian intelligence ship sinks off Turkey

Fog and low visibility is being blamed for a Russian naval ship sinking off Turkey's Black Sea coast after colliding with a vessel carrying livestock.

File image of a Russian Black Sea Fleet frigate. Source: TASS

A Russian naval intelligence ship has sunk off Turkey's Black Sea coast after colliding with a vessel carrying livestock and all 78 personnel on board were evacuated, Turkey's coastal safety authority says.

The ship, identified as the "Liman", collided with the Togo-flagged "Youzarsif H", the coastal safety authority said on its website on Thursday.

Turkish authorities dispatched a tugboat and three fast rescue vessels, it said.

Turkish shipping agency GAC said separately that the collision was caused due to fog and low visibility.

Broadcaster NTV said the collision occurred 29 km from Kilyos village, on the Black Sea coast just north of Istanbul.

Turkey's Bosphorus Strait, which cuts through Istanbul, is one of the world's most important waterways for transit of oil and grains.

The waterway connects the Black Sea to the Mediterranean.