Romania finds Russian drone debris with warhead, case sent to prosecutors

The Defense Ministry said it was notified of the drone debris on June 29 after a local resident contacted emergency services. Specialists dispatched to the scene confirmed, following an assessment, that the wreckage contained a hazardous explosive device.

Explosive ordnance disposal teams destroyed the drone's warhead in a controlled detonation at a designated safe site on the morning of June 30.

The ministry said all materials related to the incident have been transferred to the prosecutor's office attached to the Constanța Court of Appeal for further investigation.

Russian drones entering Romanian territory

The Romanian Defense Ministry also said that since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it has recorded more than 100 Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilian and industrial facilities located near the Romanian border. During the same period, Romanian authorities officially registered 29 cases of Russian military drones violating the country's sovereign airspace.

On the night of May 29, Russia launched drone strikes against civilian and infrastructure targets in Ukraine near the Romanian border. One of the drones entered Romanian airspace and crashed onto the roof of an apartment building in the city of Galați. In response, Romania announced the closure of Russia's consulate in Constanța and declared the Russian consul persona non grata. On June 25, Russia's Foreign Ministry retaliated by announcing the closure of Romania's consulate in St. Petersburg and delivered a corresponding diplomatic note to Romania's ambassador to Russia, Cristian Istrate.

The repeated crashes of Russian drones on the territory of a NATO member have also prompted allies to review their defense programs.

On June 10, NATO members discussed a proposal to accelerate a joint procurement program for unmanned aerial vehicles.