Russian UAVs suspected of entering NATO airspace during Odesa attack

During a massive night attack on Ukraine, Russian strike drones may have crossed international borders, potentially entering the airspace of Romania and Moldova, according to the Ukrainian Air Force's post on Telegram channel.

“Several Russian UAVs in the Odesa region, near the border with Moldova, may have crossed the state border,” the Air Force stated. They also noted that one drone may have crossed into Romanian airspace.

Earlier, on November 22, Romania scrambled two F-16 fighter jets in response to a Russian drone strike on the Odesa region. Similarly, on the night of November 11, Romania put its air defence systems on high alert due to a large-scale Russian drone attack on Ukrainian ports along the Danube River.

Radars detected the movement of a group of drones in an area adjacent to Romanian airspace, prompting a preventive activation of Romania’s air defence systems. However, due to adverse weather conditions in the southeastern part of the country, the Air Police combat aircraft were unable to take off.

In a separate incident, fragments of an unidentified drone were previously discovered in Tulcea County, Romania, which borders Ukraine. Experts from the Romanian Ministry of Defence collected the pieces for further investigation.

Earlier this year, on September 13, a Russian strike drone also entered Romanian airspace during an attempted attack on Ukrainian infrastructure along the Danube.

By Tamilla Hasanova