Spanish fighters shoot down drone in Romanian airspace during NATO mission

The Minister of Defense of Romania, Radu Miruta, and the Ministry of Defense of Spain reported this Sunday that two Spanish fighters deployed in the NATO mission have shot down a drone that violated Romanian airspace this Sunday. "At 04:44 hours, the target was detected entering the Romanian national airspace, 24 kilometers north of Galati. At that moment, two Spanish F-18 fighter planes, which had already been put on alert as a precautionary measure, received authorization to intervene," the Romanian president confirmed in a publication on his social networks. The interception and subsequent destruction of the device occurred in a depopulated area, between the towns of Baleni and Cudalbi, in the Galați county, as reported by the Romanian Ministry of Defense. "Congratulations to the Spanish pilots and the Romanian military personnel in the command center for a successful mission! Romania is defending its airspace, and our allies are at our side. Vigilance, rapid response and allied solidarity: these are the concrete guarantees of our security," celebrated the head of Defense. The department headed by Margarita Robles has confirmed the news with a message in “The pilots of the 12th Wing, who ensure the security of the eastern flank, have shot down a drone in Romania, demonstrating the commitment and training of our FAS,” he added. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, has also reported in X that he has spoken with his counterpart from Romania, Oana-Silvia, who has thanked him for the intervention of the Spanish pilots. Albares also defends that “Spain's work and solidarity are key to Euro-Atlantic security.” Romania, which is “on the first line of defense of the European Union” according to the minister, shares a land border of approximately 614 kilometers with Ukraine, and has seen up close how Russian drones have violated its airspace on several occasions since the military operation against kyiv began in February 2022.