Russia Questions Claims Over Drone Crash in Romania

(MENAFN) Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations has challenged allegations linking Moscow to a recent drone incident in Romania, arguing that Western governments have rushed to assign blame without waiting for a thorough investigation.

The controversy centers on a drone carrying explosives that crashed into a residential building in the Romanian city of Galati, near the border with Ukraine, on Friday. The incident injured two people and prompted Romanian authorities to claim that the aircraft originated from Russia.

Addressing an emergency session of the UN Security Council, Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia suggested that the swift response from some Western countries was driven more by political considerations than by established facts. He argued that the situation was being used to generate “yet another anti-Russian information wave.”

Nebenzia pointed to what he described as inconsistencies in the publicly presented version of events. According to Romanian officials, the drone involved was a Russian-made Geran-2. However, the Russian diplomat argued that a drone carrying the type of explosive payload typically associated with that model would have caused significantly greater damage than what was shown in images and reports from the scene.

He also highlighted differing explanations offered by Romanian officials. Initial statements reportedly characterized the event as a deliberate attack, while later comments from Romanian President Nicusor Dan suggested the drone may have deviated from its course after being affected by Ukrainian air defense activity.

According to Nebenzia, that explanation also raises questions, as he argued that a drone whose flight path had been disrupted would have been unlikely to continue traveling nearly 20 kilometers before reaching the impact site.

The Russian representative further criticized what he described as a lack of consideration for alternative scenarios. He noted that possibilities such as accidental involvement by Ukrainian forces or other circumstances had not been publicly explored despite previous incidents in which drones linked to the conflict had reportedly entered the territories of neighboring countries.

Nebenzia referenced earlier drone-related incidents reported in Latvia, Lithuania and Finland, arguing that conclusions regarding responsibility should be based on comprehensive investigations rather than immediate assumptions.

The incident has added to growing concerns among countries bordering the conflict zone, where occasional drone and missile-related events have heightened security tensions and prompted calls for greater scrutiny of cross-border airspace violations.

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