Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned Russia is prepping a ‘new massive attack’ just hours after a Russian drone hit a Romanian apartment. Taking to X, he warned the issue ‘concerns both the United States and Europe’.
In a video message address to his Ukrainian citizens, the president said: ‘We have intel indicating that Russia is preparing a new massive attack. Please pay attention to air raid alerts and stay safe.
‘Air defense and the continued need to help Ukraine protect its skies are our key priorities. I am grateful to every partner, every leader, and every country that is ready to help and that implements our arrangements in full.’
However, in a rebuff on Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said his nation ‘has never threatened and is not threatening European countries’. He recalled how Ukrainian drones flew into Poland and Baltic states earlier flagging it as a similar situation. He added that no one can tell where the drone originated, while at the same time trying to pin the blame on Ukraine.
Romanian officials called it a “serious and irresponsible escalation” by Moscow, while the European Union and NATO condemned the breach of airspace and warned against further incursions. NATO chief Mark Rutte said after speaking with the Romanian president that Russia’s behaviour was “reckless” and a danger to all alliance members. He
It remains to see if this incident could push NATO towards Article 5, its strongest collective defence clause?
What Happened in Romania?
According to Romania’s defence military, the drone was part of a wider wave of Russian attacks on Ukrainian targets near the Danube river border. On the intervening nights of May 28-29, one drone crossed into Romanian airspace and was tracked by radar deep into the southern part of Galati, which later crashed into an apartment injuring two.
Romanian forces scrambled two F-16 fighter jets after detecting multiple drones in the area, but officials said they did not have enough time to intercept this one safely. A defence official said there were “no realistic opportunities to engage it safely”, as the window to act was just around four minutes.
Similar incidents over the past 20 years have strained relations between Russia and the West – at times almost to breaking point.
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