Romania says drone fragments damage property during overnight Russian attack on Ukraine
BUCHAREST, April 25 (Reuters) – Romania’s defense ministry said in a statement that Russia had seized drone parts in the southeastern city of Galati, where “a power pole and a house annex were damaged” following an overnight attack on neighboring Ukraine.
The Ministry announced that there was no loss of life.
Romania, a member of both NATO and the European Union, shares a 650 km (400 mi) land border with Ukraine and has seen Russian drones repeatedly violate its airspace while Moscow attacked Ukrainian ports on the other side of the Danube.
While drone parts regularly fall in Romania, Saturday saw damage to property for the first time.
“The defense ministry unequivocally condemns the irresponsible actions of the Russian Federation and emphasizes that they pose a new challenge to regional security and stability in the Black Sea region,” the ministry’s statement said. The statement was included.
“Such incidents show that the Russian Federation does not respect the norms of international law and endanger not only the security of Romanian citizens, but also the collective security of NATO.”
Two Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets, part of the British air police mission in Romania, were scrambled to monitor the attack from the air, which was standard procedure. Residents of neighboring Tulcea County were also warned to take cover.
Tensions have risen on Europe’s eastern flank in recent months after suspected Russian drones violated the airspace of several NATO countries.
Romanian law allows shooting down drones in peacetime if lives or property are at risk, but has not yet done so.
A US-made, AI-enabled counter-drone system will be integrated into national air defense systems within days of final tests, Defense Minister Radu Miruta said on Friday.
Miruta said the Merops system, developed by Project Eagle, a US-based company backed by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt, could counter drone threats along the Danube river.
Poland currently uses the system on NATO’s eastern flank.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by Tom Hogue)
