Romanian Airspace Violated by Drone Amidst Ukraine Conflict
Romaniaโฃ scrambledโฃ fighter jets on Saturday, September 13th, inโ responseโ to a suspected drone intrusion into its airspace, coinciding with Russian โขattacks on infrastructure in โUkraine near theโค Romanian border. the Romanian Ministryโค ofโ Defence reported the incident, stating that two F-16s and subsequently two Eurofighter Typhoons – part of the German-led air policing โขmission in Romania โ- were deployed. โขResidents in southeastern Romania, near the Danube River and the Ukrainian border, โwere advised to seek shelter.
Defense Minister Ion-Antonescu Moste revealed that the aircraft detected the drone within Romanian airspace and tracked it until it exited radar coverage approximately 20 kilometers southwest of the village of chilli. Helicopters are currently being deployedโ to search the border area for potential drone debris, though initial assessments suggestโฃ the droneโค ultimately crossed into Ukrainian airspace.
The incident occurred as Poland also reacted to airspace violations, ordering aircraft toโฃ be stationed and temporarily closing the Lublin airport after shootingโ down Russian drones within its own territory. Poland is receivingโค airโ support from NATO allies.
Romania, a NATO and European Union member sharing a 650-kilometer border with Ukraine, has repeatedly experienced debris from Russian drones falling onto its territory since the โstart of โthe war.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated via X (formerly Twitter) that the drone penetrated Romanian airspaceโค for approximately 10 kilometers andโ remainedโ within NATO airspaceโข for around 50 minutes, characterizing it as a purposeful escalation of the Russian war. He called โfor increased sanctions on Russianโค trade โคand collective defense measures.
NATO โannounced plans on Friday to reinforce its โeastern flank following Poland’s downing of โa Russian droneโฃ – theโ first such incident involving a Western partner during the conflict. Romania recentlyโ passed legislation allowing its military to operate in its airspace during peacetime to address potential threats, though full implementation โคof the law isโค still pending.
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard โคexpressed solidarity with Romania via X,condemning the airspace violation asโ “unacceptable” and reaffirming Sweden’s commitment to preventing andโ protecting its partners as a NATO and EUโ member.