NATO ally Romania reports increased rate of Russian drone incursions, fighter alerts

Source: ABC News

May 2, 2026, 5:05 AM



LONDON -- On NATO's southeastern flank, one ally is reporting an increasing rate of Russian drone violations and related air policing missions, as Moscow expands its long-range strike campaign against targets all across Ukraine.

Romania, a nation of some 19 million people, shares around 400 miles of border with Ukraine. To its east, Romania abuts the Black Sea, the Danube River and -- beyond that -- Ukraine, putting that part of the country in particular on the front lines of Russia's war against its neighbor and Moscow's wider showdown with the NATO alliance.

The contact zone there spans the Danube, the river's width of around 1,640 feet -- less than three football fields -- separating Romania and its NATO defenses from the Ukrainian river ports that have for years been a focus of Russia's long-range drone and missile bombardments.

Data provided to ABC News by Romania's Defense Ministry shows that the rate of Russian attacks on Ukrainian targets close to the NATO frontier is increasing, resulting in more regular scrambling of NATO fighters for defensive missions, more violations of NATO airspace by Russian drones and the discovery of more munition fragments on allied territory.

Read more: https://abcnews.com/International/nato-ally-romania-reports-increased-rate-russian-drone/story?id=132484493