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Romanian president: No Russian drones crossed the border

by Elsa Court and The Kyiv Independent news desk September 5, 2023 9:54 PM 2 min read
Klaus Iohannis, Romania's president, on the opening day of the annual NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, on Tuesday, July 11, 2023. (Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
This audio is created with AI assistance

There is no evidence Russian drones reached Romania during an overnight attack on Ukraine on Sept. 4, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said on Sept. 5.

He recognized that the attacks took place "at a very short distance from the Romanian border."

The president mentioned that attacks have been recorded just 800 meters from the border.

However, "we have total control over our national space," and Romania is "very well defended" within NATO, Iohannis added.

Ukraine's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oleh Nikolenko said on Sept. 4, citing the State Border Guard Service, that an unspecified number of drones had fallen and detonated in Romania during an attack on Odesa Oblast.

Romania's Defense Ministry "firmly denied" this and said there were no direct military threats to the country.

An explosion allegedly caused by Russian drones falling in Romania during Russia's overnight attack on Odesa Oblast on Sept. 4, 2023. (Oleh Nikolenko/Facebook)

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba then responded that Ukraine has visual evidence of Russian attack drones falling on Romanian territory.

"It's pointless to deny that something fell there," Kuleba said.

According to the Foreign Ministry's spokesman Oleh Nikolenko, the attack targeted the area of the Izmail port across the Danube River from Romania. Bucharest, however, said that Russia hit the port of Reni, around 60 kilometers to the west.

On Aug. 3, reports emerged that Russian drones had crossed into Romania's territory during an Aug. 2 attack on the Ukrainian town of Izmail.

A local mayor cited residents who said the drones passed over people's homes, and one of them fell in a forest.

The Romanian Air Force reportedly inspected the site but did not find any "concrete elements" to prove the allegations.

Ukraine war latest: Defense Ministry reports gains in Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia oblasts; Putin demands sanctions relief to revive grain deal
Key development on Sept. 4: * Defense Ministry reports gains in Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia oblasts * Russia demands concessions to relaunch grain deal * Romania denies Russian drone falls on its territory * Russia attacks Ukraine with over 30 drones at night, damaging infrastructure * Reznikov: Rus…

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