Romania Reports Russian Drone Breach, Second NATO Country Hit in Days
Romania said Saturday that a Russian drone entered its airspace during strikes on Ukraine, marking the second NATO country this week to report such an incursion.
The Romanian defense ministry said two F-16 fighter jets were already airborne, monitoring Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure along the Danube. The drone was tracked about 20 kilometers southwest of the border village of Chilia Veche before disappearing from radar. Officials stressed it did not cross populated areas or pose an immediate threat.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed the possibility of error. “It is an obvious expansion of the war by Russia,” he said, urging Western allies to tighten sanctions. Moscow has not commented.
The incident comes just days after Poland said it shot down at least three Russian drones that entered its airspace. Warsaw has since raised its air defenses to their highest alert. “Preventative operations of aviation—Polish and allied—have begun in our airspace,” Prime Minister Donald Tusk said, as ground-based systems went on full readiness.
European leaders condemned the latest breach. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas called it “yet another unacceptable violation of an EU member state’s sovereignty.” The Czech Republic announced it was sending a special operations helicopter unit—three Mi-171S aircraft equipped for combat—to Poland in response to the growing threat along NATO’s eastern flank.
Russia’s defense ministry has previously denied any plans to strike facilities in NATO countries. Belarus, a close Moscow ally, claimed drones that crossed into Poland earlier this week were an accident caused by jamming systems.
The airspace incidents unfold as Russia intensifies its campaign in Ukraine following President Vladimir Putin’s return from a summit with former U.S. President Donald Trump in Alaska. Trump has said he is “ready” to impose tougher sanctions on Moscow—if NATO countries stop purchasing Russian oil.
