Moldovan President Sandu condemns Russian drone strike on border crossing point that killed 2, injured 3

Moldovan President Maia Sandu condemned an overnight Russian drone strike on the Starokozache international border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova, in a Sept. 9 statement on X.

Russia struck the Starokozache border crossing overnight with drones, killing two civilians and injuring three others, Odesa Oblast Governor Oleh Kiper said. Rescuers evacuated another 16 people from a bus, according to Kiper.

Sandu also said that a Russian drone forced Moldova to close its airspace temporarily, warning that the Russian advance in Ukraine is moving further west.

"I urge more air defense support for Ukraine," Sandu said.

Earlier in the day, referring to Russian attacks on the border crossing, among others, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on X that "there has been too little response from the international community to these strikes."

The Southern Regional Directorate of Ukraine's State Border Guard Service announced in a Facebook post on Sept. 9 that border operations had resumed.

"The operation of this border crossing point will help to avoid congestion and traffic build-up on other routes along the border with Moldova. At the same time, security measures for citizens crossing the border will continue to be implemented in response to any (Russian) attempts to attack border infrastructure," the statement reads.

Russia most likely wants to disrupt logistics with its attacks on border crossings, Andriy Demchenko, the spokesman for Ukraine's State Border Guard Service, said during the national telethon, Suspilne reported.

The attack was the fourth one on a border crossing between Moldova and Ukraine, Demchenko added.

A Russian Shahed-type drone strike overnight on Aug. 25 damaged the Vynohradivka border crossing between Ukraine and Moldova in Odesa Oblast, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said at the time.

In a post on X, Sybiha called on the international community to "condemn Russia's systematic targeting of civilian transport corridors and critical border infrastructure."

Moldova's Foreign Ministry reported on Aug. 27 that five drones violated Moldovan airspace on the night prior.

"We have repeatedly warned about the unacceptable risks posed by Russia's war against Ukraine," the ministry wrote.

A suspected Russian Shahed-type drone violated Moldovan and Romanian airspace on Sept. 8, forcing airspace closures, emergency alerts and the scrambling of NATO fighter jets.

The Moldovan military detected an "unmanned aerial vehicle" at 4:20 p.m. local time on Sept. 8, the Moldovan Defense Ministry said in a statement, identifying it as a "Shahed-type" drone that entered the country's airspace from the "direction of … Ukraine."

Spanish F/A-18 fighter jets, deployed as part of a NATO air-policing mission, were scrambled from Mihail Kogalniceanu Air Base in Romania as the drone entered Romanian airspace.