Romania scrambles fighter jets as Poland also deploys aircraft over threat of a drone attack.
Romania has scrambled fighter jets after a drone breached the country’s airspace during a Russian attack on neighboring Ukraine, the defense ministry said, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Moscow of expanding its war.
The Romanian move on Saturday evening came as Poland also deployed aircraft and closed an airport in the eastern city of Lublin over the threat of a drone attack.
Ukraine’s NATO and European Union neighbors have been on guard since Poland shot down Russian drones in its airspace earlier this week, with the backing of aircraft from its NATO allies.
NATO on Friday announced plans to beef up the defense of Europe’s eastern flank, two days after Poland shot down drones that had breached its airspace in the first known action by a member of the Western alliance during Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Poland says the drone incursions are an attempt by Russia to test the capabilities of Poland and NATO to respond.
Romania’s Defense Ministry said it detected the drone incursion and scrambled two F-16 fighter jets as well as two Eurofighters, part of German air policing missions in Romania, and warned citizens to take cover.
It said the jets followed the drone until “it disappeared from the radar” near the Romanian village of Chilia Veche in far eastern Romania.
Defense Minister Ionut Mosteanu said the F-16 pilots came close to taking down the drone before it left the country’s airspace, adding choppers would survey the area near the border to look for potential drone parts.
“All information at this moment indicates the drone exited airspace to Ukraine,” he told Antena 3.
Romania shares a 650km border with Ukraine and has had Russian drone fragments fall onto its territory repeatedly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Last year Russian drone breached Romanian airspace by 30 kilometers.
The Ukrainian president said on the social media platform X that data showed the drone breached about 10 kilometers into Romanian territory and operated in NATO airspace for about 50 minutes.
He alleged that the Russian military knows where its drones are headed and how long they can operate in the air. Sweden also condemned the drone incursion in Romania.
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard wrote on X that the breach was “another unacceptable violation of NATO airspace”.
“Sweden stands in full solidarity with Romania as a NATO Ally and EU Member State. We are always ready to contribute further to the deterrence and defense of the Alliance.”
NATO to beef up defense of Europe’s eastern flank after Poland shot down drones
