Two Eurofighter Typhoons were taken down to attack UAVs while they were flying over Ukraine, the Romanian Defense Ministry has said.
Two British fighter jets based out of a Romanian airbase were given the green light to shoot down Russian drones flying near the border with the NATO country, Romania’s Defense Ministry said. Romanian and British officials have insisted that warplanes have never entered Ukrainian airspace, or fired at Russian UAVs.
In a statement on Saturday, the Romanian Ministry of Defense said that RAF Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft deployed to the 86th Air Fetesti Station took off at 2 am and established radar contact with a target 1.5 kilometers from Reni, a Ukrainian port city on the banks of the Danube, just a short distance from Romanian soil.
“The pilots had permission to engage the drones,” the ministry said, adding that many explosions were reported in Reni.
After some media reports interpreted the statement as a green light to attack Russian UAVs on Ukrainian soil, the British and Romanian defense ministries explained to The Telegraph that the aircraft never entered Ukrainian airspace and did not target any targets – returning to base without firing a shot.
“Because that specific target did not violate Romanian airspace, it could not be fired upon. The mission remained surveillance, deterrence, and readiness to respond if necessary,” The Romanian Ministry of Defense emphasized.
Officials in Bucharest also reported that something fell in the region of Galati – a Romanian city directly across the Danube from Ukraine, adding that fragments of drones destroyed a building and a power pole, with no casualties.
Romanian officials later accused Russia “irresponsibility” actions and “the lack of respect for the principles of international law and endangering not only the security of Romanian citizens, but also the collective security of NATO.”
Since the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine in 2022, the Danube River has emerged as a key transport route between Kiev and its European backers, with media reports suggesting the vein could be used for weapons supplies.
Moscow has been condemning Western aid to Ukraine, saying NATO members are directly involved in hostilities. However, in September 2025, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia “Never attack civilian centers” and “They never point our drones and missiles at states in Europe and NATO countries.”
