A drone that smashed into a Romanian apartment building set off furious condemnation of Russia by Romania and its NATO allies on Friday but President Vladimir Putin insisted there was no evidence to blame his country.
Two people were injured in the first drone hit on a residential building outside Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022.
Romania called the incident a “serious and irresponsible escalation” by its neighbour, but Putin said Russia “has never threatened and is not threatening European countries.”
“No one can say the origin of this or that aircraft until an examination of that aircraft is conducted,” he said during a visit to Kazakhstan.
“If they provide us with any objective data … in that case, will we assess what happened.”
Here is what we know about the drone crash:
What happened?
The drone hit the roof of an apartment building in the centre of the city of Galati, close to the border with Ukraine, sparking a fire and sending a 14-year-old boy and 53-year-old woman to hospital with injuries, officials said.
Drone incursions in Romania have been detected dozens of times since the start of the Ukraine war, but no residential buildings had previously been hit.
The Romanian defence ministry said two F-16 fighter jets had been scrambled in response to the drone, which it said had entered Romania’s airspace during Russian strikes on Ukraine.
Why wasn’t the drone stopped?
Romanian forces had insufficient time — four minutes — to shoot down the drone, General Gheorghe Maxim from the Joint Forces Command said, adding there were “no realistic opportunities to engage it safely.”
Romanian President Nicusor Dan said the decision not to engage was made “because the conditions necessary to destroy it without significantly endangering the safety of the civilian population were not present.”
A senior NATO military official said: “NATO detected and tracked the Russian drone, but it entered Romanian airspace only minutes before striking the apartment building in Galați.” The official said the drone was moving at nearly 200 kilometres [125 miles] an hour and Galati was less than 15 km [nine miles] from the border.
How has Romania responded?
Romania summoned the Russian ambassador, and Dan convened a national defence council meeting on “the most serious incident to have affected our national territory” since Russia invaded Ukraine.
Dan said Romania would expel the Russian consul general in Constanta and close the mission. Russia said it was preparing “retaliatory measures.”
Romania’s defence ministry said Bucharest had “requested measures to accelerate the transfer of anti-drone capabilities to Romania.” Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has promised help.
Dan said that in a conversation NATO chief Mark Rutte had also promised help to get more air defence equipment “as quickly as possible.”
Inhabitants of Galati meanwhile expressed fear, bewilderment and anger.
“Where are the anti-drone systems here? Shouldn’t they be somewhere on the border of Romania? Why aren’t they? Where is the European Union? NATO?” asked 47-year-old Mihaela, who only gave her first name.
Later Friday, Dan — whose country is already facing political turmoil, with the prime minister ousted in a no-confidence vote this month — was booed when he visited the site of the crash, with some chanting “resignation.”
What have the EU and its allies said?
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said Russia’s “war of aggression” had “crossed yet another line,” pledging to increase deterrence on the EU’s eastern border.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the incident showed Russia’s “willingness to escalate,” and Britain’s Keir Starmer condemned the “serious violation of NATO airspace.”
France said it had summoned the Russian ambassador. Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned what he called a “serious violation of NATO airspace.”
The U.S. ambassador to NATO, Matthew Whitaker, also slammed the “reckless incursion,” saying: “We stand with our NATO ally.”
What will NATO do next?
“Russia’s reckless behaviour is a danger to us all,” NATO chief Rutte wrote on social media.
“NATO stands ready to defend every inch of Allied territory.”
NATO sources said there was no indication whether Romania would call for emergency consultations.
Such consultations have been called three times during Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine: the first time just after the invasion in 2022, once by Poland after incursions by Russian drones, and once by Estonia after Russian fighter jets violated its airspace.
