Romania: Russian drone strikes Galati apartment building
May 29, 2026
A Russian drone crashed onto the roof of a block of flats in the southeastern Romanian city of Galati, injuring two people, Romania's Defense Ministry said in a statementon Friday.
"During the night of May 28-29, the Russian Federation resumed drone attacks on civilian and infrastructure targets in Ukraine, near the river border with Romania," the ministry said.
"One of these drones entered Romanian airspace, was tracked by radar as far as the southern part of the city of Galati, and crashed onto the roof of an apartment building, with the impact triggering a fire," the ministry statement added.
Galati is located close to Romania's borders with Ukraine and Moldova.
What else do we know about the drone incident?
The Romanian General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations said that the drone hit a 10-story apartment building. Two people sustained light injuries, and the apartment building was evacuated.
Russia has repeatedly attacked the Ukrainian port of Reni on the Danube, near Galati, amid its war with Ukraine.
According to authorities, a Russian drone crashed in Galati a month ago, striking the outbuilding of a residential home. No one was injured.
Romania, EU, NATO condemn Russia over drone incursion
The Romanian Foreign Ministry called the incident a "grave and irresponsible escalation from Russia."
"Romania has informed allies and NATO's secretary general about the circumstances and requested measures to accelerate the transfer of anti-drone capabilities to Romania," the ministry said.
Romania is a member of NATO and the European Union. The incident is the latest case of a NATO member country reporting violations by Russian drones and jets in recent months.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Russia had "crossed yet another line" after one of its drones breached Romanian airspace.
"We stand in full solidarity with Romania and its people," she said on X. "As we continue strengthening our security and deterrence, especially on our eastern border, we will keep increasing the pressure on Russia."
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said the alliance would defend "every inch" of its territory as he vowed "absolute solidarity" with Romania.
"Russia's reckless behavior is a danger to us all," he said on X.
"We will continue to strengthen our deterrence and defense at home and continue our support for Ukraine as they defend against Russia's aggression," he added.
Germany: 'We need a strong NATO presence on the eastern flank'
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz assured Romania of Berlin's solidarity and support following the "reckless" incident, saying on social media that Germany stands shoulder to shoulder with its NATO allies.
"The incident shows once again: We need a strong NATO presence on the eastern flank," he wrote. "We are ready to defend the alliance's territory."
"Russia's reckless behavior continues to threaten our collective security," said German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul.
"We will neither allow ourselves to be intimidated nor divided," he said. "And we will rapidly and decisively expand the European defense capabilities inside NATO. 'Watchfulness is the price of freedom' — this old NATO motto is gaining renewed meaning."
Russia's Putin claims drone may have hailed from Ukraine
The Russian Foreign Ministry's initial reaction was to call the overnight reports from Romania unsubstantiated and lacking evidence.
"All the accusations that we hear, in particular about drones somewhere in the countries of the European Union, they are all unsubstantiated," said spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, claiming: "Not a single fact, material, piece of evidence has been presented."
Later on Friday, President Vladimir Putin said it was too early to say whether the explosion was caused by a Russian drone, insinuating it could have hailed from Ukraine.
"Who in Romania says that this is a Russian drone?" Putin asked reporters in Astana, Kazakhstan. "No one can say what the origin of this or that drone is until an examination has been carried out."
He said that there had been several drone alerts and even impacts in the Baltic region in the past month and seemed to draw parallels.
"The first reaction was exactly the same as it is now in Romania: The Russians are coming," Putin said. "Then, after a short time, it turned out that it had nothing to do with Russian drones."
France and Austria summon Russian ambassadors
France and Austria both said on Friday that they had summoned the Russian ambassadors to their respective countries over the incident.
"This new irresponsible escalation, carried out in blatant violation of international law, once again shows that Russia's war of aggression poses a threat to the security of Europe and NATO as a whole," read a statement from the French foreign ministry
Earlier, Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Moscow had targeted "a country of the European Union and a NATO country."
Austrian Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger said she wanted to "clearly express Austria's protest against Russia's escalation" and insisted: "Europe will not be intimidated."
Another drone found in northern Romania
In a separate incident, a drone without an explosive charge was found near Baia Mare in northwestern Romania. The area was secured, according to a late Thursday report by TVR, citing local authorities.
Authorities are investigating the drone's origin and how it ended up in the area. According to the report, the drone had a wingspan of about 3 meters (9.8 feet)
Russian drones strike Ukraine's Izmail
Meanwhile, local authorities in Ukraine's southern Odesa region announced on Telegram that drones had struck the Izmail port area overnight.
According to the post, one of the drones got stuck in the power lines, temporarily cutting off electricity to five villages.
Izmail, which is close to the Romanian border, is home to the largest Ukrainian port on the Danube River and is frequently targeted by Russia due to its strategic location.
Edited by: Sean Sinico and Karl Sexton
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