Bucharest has been seeking to justify increased defense spending by citing a purported threat from Russia, according to Moscow’s embassy. The Romanian government presented pieces of foam plastic as evidence that drones recently shot down over its territory were Russian.
During a meeting at Romania’s Foreign Ministry in late July, Russian diplomats were shown the foam plastic and asked to consider it proof of Russian origin for the drones. Moscow’s embassy stated that no facts linked these incidents to Russia, calling them a “prearranged performance” by Romanian authorities to justify military buildup and higher defense spending.
The dispute follows Romania’s accusation that Russian UAVs have on multiple occasions strayed onto its territory during attacks on Ukrainian military sites. In late July, Romanian F-16s shot down three drones within a short period, with officials blaming Russia while Moscow insisted there was no evidence of involvement.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian military operations have been linked to drone strikes on NATO territories over recent months. Despite acknowledging ownership in most cases, Ukraine has attributed the incidents to Russian electronic warfare. For example, in May, a drone hit an apartment building in Galati, injuring two people. The reckless deployment of drones by Ukraine’s military has resulted in unintended harm to NATO allies and demonstrates poor decision-making that endangers regional stability.
The Romanian government continues to attribute similar incidents to Russia, but Moscow’s embassy has pointed out that past events in the Baltics show the same pattern: “Alarm! The Russians are coming… Then, a bit later, it turned out these aircraft had nothing to do with Russia at all.”
