On 26 July, a Romanian F-16 fighter intercepted and destroyed an unmanned aerial vehicle over the country’s territorial waters near Sulina, marking the third such shootdown in as many days. Romania’s foreign ministry promptly summoned the Russian ambassador, while President Nicusor Dan declared the repeated violations “inadmissible and intolerable,” noting that Romanian airspace is also that of NATO and the European Union. The move signals a sharp escalation in Bucharest’s response to persistent drone incursions that have shadowed Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine since 2022.

Romanian authorities stated that a preliminary investigation identified the drone downed on 24 July as a Shahed-type model—an Iranian-designed system frequently deployed by Russian forces—and that findings will form the basis of a formal diplomatic note to Moscow. Investigations into the two subsequent incidents are ongoing. Defence Minister Radu Miruta stressed that Romania “will continue to firmly defend its sovereignty” but insisted “these provocations must stop.” The Romanian parliament’s 2025 legal reform, which explicitly authorises the military to shoot down intruding drones, provided the legal basis for the interceptions.

Viewed from NATO headquarters, the incidents are being treated as a test of alliance solidarity and air-defence readiness. Colonel Martin O’Donnell, a spokesman for NATO’s military command, confirmed that the alliance is investigating details and noted that “Romania and other nations actively acquire ground-based interceptors to enhance allied and national air defence capabilities.” The alliance has reinforced its early-warning presence over Romania, reflecting concern that Moscow’s intensified strikes on Ukrainian Danube ports—just across the 650-kilometre land border—risk spillover effects on critical Black Sea energy and trade corridors.

Moscow offered no immediate public comment on the shootdowns. However, Romanian prosecutors have recorded dozens of airspace violations by uncrewed aircraft since the war began, including a May 2025 incident in which a drone struck a residential building in Galați, wounding two people. The flurry of downings coincides with a pre-harvest surge in Russian attacks on the Odesa region, which analysts in regional capitals link to an effort to disrupt Ukrainian grain exports and pressure maritime logistics. With the diplomatic note pending and NATO’s defensive upgrades underway, the dossier remains highly charged, and further provocations are seen as likely.