a fighter jet flying through a cloudy sky

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Romanian Jet Shoots Down Drone in NATO First

worldJul 26, 2026·297 words·3 min read

Romania's air force destroyed a drone that had entered the country's skies without permission on Friday. Officials called it a first: no NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) member had previously shot down a drone in its own airspace. Foreign Minister Oana Țoiu said the interception happened over an empty stretch of Buzău County, while the American broadcaster ABC News placed the crash site close to Padina, north-east of Bucharest.

Romania shares a long border with Ukraine. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, dozens of drones have crossed into Romanian airspace or left debris on the ground. In June a Ukrainian sea drone exploded at a Black Sea port. A month earlier a Russian drone went off course and hit an apartment block, hurting two people. Before Friday, Romanian and allied jets only followed these drones. They never shot one down.

The war went on during the same week. A Russian drone strike killed three delivery drivers in the Sumy region. An attack near Kyiv killed at least ten people. The United Nations Security Council will meet about Ukraine on Monday.

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