Romania has shot down two drones over the Black Sea after they entered national airspace near Sulina. The targets were destroyed by two Romanian F-16 fighters over the country's territorial waters, the Ministry of National Defense announced.
The planes took off at 17:43 from the “Borcea“ air base after radars detected a group of air targets about 120 kilometers east of Snake Island, moving southwest. The first drone entered Romanian airspace at 17:59 and was shot down two minutes later. The second target crossed the border at 18:01 and was destroyed at 18:05.
The first drone was shot down about 25 kilometers southeast of Sulina, and the second - approximately 20 kilometers east of the city. According to the Romanian military, both devices have been identified as drones, but it has not yet been reported where they took off from. “Our pilots shot down two drones today that entered Romanian airspace“, said Acting Defense Minister Radu Mirusha.
Incident follows series of attacks on ships
The operation was carried out after a series of drone incidents in the western Black Sea. In the past week, attacks on commercial ships off the coast of Romania and Bulgaria have been reported, including fires on vessels in Romanian territorial waters. In one of the incidents near Sulina, five people were rescued, while seven sailors remained missing, according to the Associated Press.
Romanian President Nicos Dan said after a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev that "there will be a reaction from the Romanian state". The origin of the drones shot down near Sulina remains unclear.
Sources: hotnews.ro, mediafax.ro, apnews.com