KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A Russian drone violated Romania’s airspace during overnight raids on neighboring Ukraine, the NATO member said Sunday, urging Moscow to stop what it described as an escalation.
The incident occurred as Russia carried out attacks on “civilian targets and port infrastructure” across the Danube River in Ukraine, the Romanian Ministry of National Defense said.
Romania deployed F-16 fighter jets to monitor its airspace and NATO allies were kept informed, the ministry said. Romanian emergency authorities also sent text alerts to residents of two eastern regions.
Preliminary data indicate that there may be an “impact zone” in an uninhabited area near the Romanian village of Periprava, the ministry said, adding that an investigation was underway.
Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Romania has confirmed drone fragments on its territory on several occasions and as recently as July this year.
The Romanian Ministry of Defense strongly condemned the Russian attacks on Ukraine, calling them “unjustified and in serious contradiction to the norms of international law.”
Mircea Geoana, NATO’s outgoing deputy secretary general and Romania’s former top diplomat, said the military alliance also condemned Russia’s violation of Romanian airspace. “While we have no information indicating a deliberate attack by Russia on allies, these acts are irresponsible and potentially dangerous,” he wrote on X.
Civilians killed in Ukraine
In Ukraine, two civilians were killed and four more wounded in a nighttime Russian airstrike on the northern city of Sumy, the regional military administration reported. Two children were among the wounded, the administration said. In the Kharkiv region further east, two elderly women were killed in nighttime shelling, local governor Oleh Syniehubov said.
During the night, Ukrainian air defense units shot down one of four cruise missiles and 15 of 23 Iranian-made Shahed drones launched by Russia, the Ukrainian Air Force reported, adding that none of the cruise missiles hit any targets.
In Ukraine’s industrial east, Russian forces continued their months-long advance toward the city of Pokrovsk and stepped up attacks near the city of Kurakhove, further south, the Ukrainian General Staff said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said its forces had captured Novohrodivka, a small town about 12 miles (19 kilometers) southeast of Pokrovsk.
___
Stephen McGrath, an Associated Press editor in Sighisoara, Romania, contributed to this report.
___
