Romania on Sunday said it was summoning Russia’s ambassador after the NATO member’s military shot down the third drone in as many days in the country bordering Ukraine.
– Romania has seen frequent drone incursions since Russia launched its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, but had not shot down any until Friday.
– On Sunday, a Romanian F-16 fighter jet shot down a drone over the Black Sea, five minutes after it entered the country’s airspace, defence minister Radu Miruta said on Facebook.
– Romania is summoning Russia’s ambassador following “repeated violations”, foreign minister Oana Toiu said on X.
– President Nicusor Dan said according to an investigation, a drone shot down on Friday was a “Shahed model, used by the Russian Federation in its war of aggression against Ukraine.”
– Investigations into drones shot down Saturday and Sunday were ongoing, he added.
– “It is unacceptable and intolerable for the Russian Federation to continue violating Romania’s airspace, which is also the airspace of NATO and the European Union,” he said on X.
– Romania has reported dozens of drone incursions during the Ukraine war.
– One smashed into an apartment building in Galati on the border with Ukraine in May, wounding two people.
– In 2025, the Romanian parliament adopted a law allowing for the shooting down of drones that breach its airspace.