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Ukraine's ambassador to Ankara rejected as "false and misleading" a comment attributed to Robert Brovdi, the Unmanned Systems Forces commander known as "Magyar", mocking the death of Turkish seafarer Savas Cakar, saying the Ukrainian commander's name was used to fabricate the post that sparked outrage.
Cakar, 54, was killed in a drone strike on the Turkish-flagged cargo ship Reyhan Sari off Novorossiysk last month, an attack no party has claimed, and the comment circulating in Turkish media had been read as a Ukrainian military figure celebrating his death, according to the ambassador.
"The information circulating in Türkiye's media landscape regarding an alleged comment by Robert Brovdi ('Magyar'), Commander of the Unmanned Systems Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, in connection with the death of Turkish seafarer Savas Cakar, is false and misleading," Ambassador Nariman Dzhelyalov said in an exclusive statement to Türkiye Today.
"Robert Brovdi did not make or leave such a comment. Nor did any member of his team publish or send such a message on his behalf. The comment in question was neither sent nor published from Robert Brovdi's email address," Dzhelyalov added.
"The name of the Ukrainian commander was used to create the false impression that he was involved in this publication. Attributing such statements to him is a deliberate manipulation and dissemination of false information," he noted.
The embassy offered condolences: "We express our sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of the deceased Turkish citizen Savas Cakar. Every civilian death is a tragedy, regardless of nationality."
Cakar died in the engine room of the Reyhan Sari when the ship, carrying coal from Russia's Taman Port to Trabzon, was hit by two successive drone strikes off Novorossiysk on July 22.
Two crewmates were wounded and evacuated to Samsun.
No party has claimed or been assigned responsibility for the attack, though it occurred in Russian-side waters where Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces, commanded by Brovdi, have claimed a broad campaign against Russia-linked shipping, reporting dozens of vessels struck in the Black and Azov Seas under Operation MoLoChKa.
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