Ukraine says Russian drones attacked Romanian soil, Bucharest denies report

kyiv, Sept 4 (Reuters) – Ukraine said on Monday that Russian drones fell and detonated on the territory of NATO member Romania during an overnight bombardment. stroke about Ukrainian port infrastructure on the Danube River, but Bucharest categorically denied the report.

Reuters was unable to independently verify either account of what could represent a dramatic turn in Russia’s 18-month war in Ukraine. Moscow has regularly carried out long-range airstrikes against targets in Ukraine, which borders Romania.

“According to the state border guard service of Ukraine, last night, during a massive Russian attack near the port of Izmail, Russian ‘Shakheds’ fell and detonated on the territory of Romania,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman wrote on Facebook. , Oleg Nikolenko.

“This is yet another confirmation that Russian missile terrorism poses a huge threat not only to the security of Ukraine, but also to the security of neighboring countries, including NATO member states,” he said.

The Romanian Defense Ministry issued a statement saying it “categorically” denied the Ukrainian claim.

NATO has a collective defense commitment under which the military alliance views an attack on one ally as an attack on all allies.

Nikolenko posted a photograph showing flames from an explosion on the opposite bank of the Danube River, the dividing line between Ukraine’s Odessa region and Romanian territory.

A Ukrainian industry source told Reuters that two Russian drones had gone down on the Romanian side.

The Ukrainian president’s chief of staff said the incident showed the need to increase supplies of modern air defense and long-range weapons to deprive Russia of the ability to launch drones and missiles like Ukraine.

“Additional weapons and long-range missiles for Ukraine, to speed up the vacancy of our territories. Russia must be defeated on the battlefield,” official Andriy Yermak wrote on the Telegram messaging app.

The Ukrainian Danube ports of Reni and Izmail accounted for about a quarter of grain exports before Russia withdrew from a UN-backed deal that provided safe passage for Ukrainian grain exports across the Black Sea. .

Since then, the Danube ports have become the main route out of Ukraine, and grain is also sent by barge to the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanta for onward shipment.

The overnight attack on Ukraine’s port infrastructure took place hours before scheduled talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.

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