A Russian "Geran-2" drone hit a high-rise apartment building in Galati, Romania, on the evening of May 28-29. The Romanian Ministry of Defense (MOD) reported on May 29 that Russian forces struck civilian and infrastructure targets near the Ukrainian-Romanian international border along the Danube River on the night of May 28-29, during which a drone entered Romanian airspace and hit an apartment building in Galati (about seven kilometers from the Ukrainian border), causing a fire.
This is according to the "Institute for the Study of War" (ISW). The strike injured at least two civilians. The Romanian Ministry of Defense reported that two Romanian F-16 fighter jets and an IAR 330 SOCAT helicopter were scrambled at 01:19 local time on the morning of May 29 after the drone entered Romanian airspace.
Romanian authorities reported that the drone was a Russian "Geran-2" (the Russian version of the Iranian "Shahed-136") and that its entire payload detonated upon impact.
The footage of the debris also matches that of a "Shahed" drone.
Romanian President Nicușor Dan said that 43 Russian drones were flying towards Romania from the east, one of which was probably intercepted by Ukrainian air defense forces over Reni, Odessa region (east of Galați on the international border with Romania and Moldova), changing its trajectory.
Dan said that Russia bears full responsibility for the drone strike, as Russia's behavior disregards international law and the safety of citizens of a NATO member state.
Romania's acting Foreign Minister Oana Coișu said that Romania is involved in discussions on the possible activation of NATO's Article 4 provision, which provides for consultations between NATO member states. NATO, in response to Russian drone strike.
Romania has closed the Russian consulate in Constanta and declared the Russian consul persona non grata in response to the strike.
Russian drones have violated Romanian airspace at least 28 times (and drone fragments have reportedly entered Romania 47 times) since the start of the war in Ukraine, but this is the first incursion in which civilians have been injured in Romania or any NATO member state.
A Russian state-run sociological institution has indicated that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating has fallen again after a slight increase. Russia's state-run All-Russian Center for Public Opinion Research (VTsIOM) released the results of a poll on May 29, showing that Putin's approval rating fell by 1.9% to 67.5% from May 18 to 24, and trust in Putin fell by 0.1% to 73.7% over the same period.
Previous VTsIOM polls have shown that Putin's trust and approval ratings had been falling for several weeks, starting in March 2026, before VTsIOM changed its methodology to include in-person polls rather than just telephone interviews, which likely contributed to a slight increase in Putin's approval rating in early May 2026.
This slight rise in early May now appears to be temporary. The VTsIOM data is probably not reliable in every case, but it remains telling that a Russian state institution is acknowledging a decline in Putin’s approval ratings as the Russian population increasingly bears the brunt of the war effort.
The discrepancy in the VTsIOM and FOM reports on May 29 may reflect the tension between the apparent public discontent in Russia and the Kremlin’s efforts to manipulate media coverage to mitigate that discontent.