Romania, Latvia and Lithuania are all claiming violations of their airspace by Russian drones this past weekend. A drone entered Romanian territory early Sunday, Sept. 8, as Moscow struck “civilian targets and port infrastructure” across the Danube in Ukraine, Romania’s Ministry of National Defense reported. It added that Bucharest had deployed F-16 warplanes to monitor its airspace and issued text alerts to residents of two eastern regions, reported AP.
Later on Sunday, Sept. 8, Latvia’s Defense Minister Andris Spruds said a Russian drone fell the day before near the town of Rezekne, and had likely strayed into Latvia from neighboring Belarus. TASS reported that Russia’s Chargé d’Affaires in Latvia Dmitry Kasatkin was invited to the Latvia Foreign Ministry following reports that a Russian drone fell down in the east of the country, Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze said.
TASS adds that a similar incident was reported in Lithuania. According to Lithuania’s Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics, a Russian drone allegedly fell down in eastern Lithuania. However, he provided no further details.
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda condemned the alleged violations of NATO airspace and called for strengthening air defense in the Baltic countries. “Lithuania condemns Russia’s violations of the NATO air space and stands with affected Allies,” Nauseda posted on X on Sept. 8, reported LRT. “The new incident in Latvia shows we must strengthen the air defense of the Baltic states. The rotational air defense model must be implemented as agreed upon at the Vilnius Summit,” he added.
Ukraine’s new Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called the incursions “a reminder (that) the aggressive actions of the Russian Federation go beyond Ukraine’s borders…. The collective response of the Allies should be maximum support for Ukraine now, to put an end to (Russian aggression), protect lives and preserve peace in Europe,” in a post on X.
A Russian response to the allegations has yet to be reported.
