The ministry said the device was the Shahed type, “commonly used by the Russian military,” but added officials cannot yet conclusively say the drone belonged to a particular state or was aimed at a specific target. They said it did not pose a threat to towns or military bases.
Romanian officials said the drone entered the country’s airspace during a Russian attack on Ukraine’s Odesa Oblast. Gen. Gheorghe Maxim said military aircraft escorted the drone after it appeared over Romania. First, an Italian jet attempted to shoot the UAV down, but the missile missed “for reasons that are unclear,” Maxim said. A Romanian F‑16 then brought the drone down.
President Nicușor Dan said an F‑16 pilot
fired because the area below was uninhabited, meaning that drone or missile
debris posed no risk to civilians.