Footage showed a dramatic explosion after a Russian drone flew over Romania – NATO fighter jets have been scrambled in response after an air raid warning was sounded
Moment suspected Russian drone explodes at ‘Ukrainian port’
NATO warplanes have been scrambled after a suspected Russian drone crashed after flying into Romanian airspace.
Footage from last night showed a dramatic explosion at a port on the Ukrainian side of the River Danube, along the border with Romania. Reports in Bucharest said drone had crashed near Tulcea county on the Romanian side of the border.
The Russian incursion triggered a response by NATO fighters, and an air raid warning was sounded close to the Danube in Romania. The Romanian defence ministry said: “At 1:35 a.m., two F-16 aircraft of the Romanian Air Force, part of the Air Police Combat Service, took off from the 86th Air Base in Borcea to monitor the air situation. The aircraft returned to base around 3:48 a.m.”
NATO officials were kept fully informed of the situation, said Romanian officials. A military spokesperson said: “The Ministry of National Defence sends a firm message of condemnation of these attacks carried out by the Russian Federation against Ukrainian civilian objects and infrastructure elements, which are unjustified and in serious contradiction with the norms of international law.”
Earlier this week, NATO warplanes were scrambled in Poland amid a wave of Russian missile and drone strikes in western Ukraine close to the alliance’s eastern flank. A spokesperson for the regional command centre said: “Duty fighter pairs have been scrambled, and the ground-based air defence and radar reconnaissance systems have reached the highest state of readiness. The steps taken are aimed at ensuring security in the areas bordering the threatened areas.”
Russia had earlier vowed to respond after 14 Western missiles and more than 200 drones hit chemical plants, energy facilities and other defence-related targets in Russia. On Monday, Ukraine fired six US-made ATACMS operational-tactical missiles, six British-made Storm Shadow air-launched cruise missiles and 31 fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicles missiles at facilities in the Bryansk Region, the Russian defence ministry said. It was Ukraine’s most ambitious aerial strike since the beginning of the war. “The actions by the Kyiv regime supported by Western handlers will trigger retaliation,” the Russian ministry said in a statement.