Romania has summoned the Russian ambassador to Bucharest to protest Moscow’s drone incursion into its airspace, making the second European nation whose airspace has been threatened by the Kremlin’s attacks on Ukraine in a week.
Romania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it summoned Vladimir Lipaev to its headquarters on Sunday, a day after the incursion occurred.
“The Romanian side conveyed its strong protests against this unacceptable and irresponsible act, which represents a violation of Romania’s sovereignty,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Such recurring situations lead to the escalation and amplification of threats to regional security. The Russian side was requested to take, without delay, all necessary measures to prevent future violations of Romanian airspace.”
Romania’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement it detected the Russian drone when a pair of F-16 jets were monitoring its border with Ukraine on Saturday at about 6 p.m. local time.
It said the drone was detected about 12 miles southwest of the village of Chilia Veche before it disappeared from radar.
A Sunday military assessment found that the drone flew for about 50 minutes before exiting Romanian airspace.
“The pilots received authorization to shoot down the target, but at the moments when they had direct contact, they assessed the collateral risks and decided not to open fire,” the Defense Ministry said.
Along with the Romanian fighter jets, German allies in Mihail Koglaniceanu scrambled two Eurofighter Typhoon jets to support the Romanian aircraft, which stayed deployed until 9:30 p.m.
The incident comes after Poland shot down at least three of at least 19 Russian drones that had breached its airspace overnight Tuesday to Wednesday morning.
Russia’s latest incursion into a European nation’s airspace has raised concerns throughout the region amid Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine and has drawn condemnation.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky called it an expansion of Russia’s war.
“The Russian military knows exactly where their drones are headed and how long they can operate in the air,” Zelensky said in an online statement. “Their routes are always calculated. This cannot be a coincidence or a mistake or the initiative of some lower level commanders.”
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called it a “blatant violation of EU sovereignty and a serious threat to regional security.”
“We are working closely with Romania and all member states to protect the EU territory,” she said in a statement.
“Suntem solidari cu Romania,” she added, which means, “we stand in solidarity with Romania” in Romanian.
(UPI)
