Romania scrambled F-16 fighter jets and issued emergency alerts after drones entered its airspace, prompting NATO to condemn Russia. The incidents occurred near the border with Ukraine.
Romania scrambled fighter jets and issued an emergency alert to residents overnight from August 12 to 13, 2026, after radar systems detected a group of five aircraft near the river border with Ukraine. According to a statement from the Romanian Ministry of Defense, the radar surveillance system detected the aircraft at 1:27 AM in the Izmail area, over Ukrainian territory.
The General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations was notified by the National Military Command Center, which sent a RO-Alert message at 1:30 AM to residents in the northern part of Tulcea County. Two F-16 fighter jets from the 86th Air Base in Borcea were scrambled to monitor the situation.
According to the Ministry of Defense, one of the aircraft remained in Romanian airspace for about ten minutes, along the Chilia branch, before leaving Romanian territory and heading towards Ukraine. The Ministry stated: "The target developed for approximately 10 minutes in the national airspace, along the Chilia branch, after which it left Romanian territory towards Ukraine, approximately 13 km southwest of Chilia Veche. Shortly after leaving Romanian airspace, explosions were reported on Ukrainian territory."
However, the Ministry of Defense later corrected the information, stating that the air target actually spent only a short time in Romanian airspace, about two minutes. "The air target entered the national airspace for approximately two minutes, after which it left Romanian territory towards Ukraine. Shortly after, explosions were heard in Ukrainian airspace," representatives of the Romanian Ministry of Defense stated.
According to data from Romanian ground radars, one of the air targets briefly crossed into the national airspace, at a distance of about two kilometers south of Pardina. The first air alert for the northern part of Tulcea County was lifted at 2:42 AM, and the second, after a repeated incident, at 10:36 AM.
A new security alert was issued on the Black Sea coast after an object resembling a drone part was spotted near Costinești. A tourist noticed the suspicious object on the beach around 8:30 AM. Witnesses stated that the object was about one meter in size, and several antennas were visible above the water.
After a few minutes, the object disappeared from view, leading to speculation that it may have sunk. Officials are investigating what exactly it was. According to reports, the radar system again detected unknown objects near the border at 9:02 AM.
NATO posted on social media platform X that allies met in the North Atlantic Council to discuss recent drone incidents and airspace violations in Poland and Romania. "They expressed support for the affected allies and reiterated that Russia bears full responsibility for the violations," the NATO post stated.
The Romanian Ministry of Defense stated that the situation is being monitored continuously and that allies are being informed in real time about such events.
