May 29, 2026
A roundup of local and world news
Newsroom, 29.05.2026, 13:58
DRONE Romania will not accept that the aggression war Russia wages on Ukraine be transferred upon its citizens, Romanian president Nicusor Dan said on Friday after a Russian drone had exploded on a block of flats in Galati, eastern Romania, wounding two people. The president summoned the country’s Supreme Defence Council and has called on the Foreign Ministry to take a series of measures concerning the country’s relations with Russia, “proportionate with this very serious situation”. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Oana Toiu, has announced she has summoned the ambassador of the Russian Federation to brief him on the measures Romania is going to take at diplomatic level. “The incident represent a serious and irresponsible escalation from the Russian Federation”, the Romanian Foreign Ministry says. Bucharest has informed its allies and NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, on the drone incident and has called for measures of transferring anti-drone capabilities to Romania. The North-Atlantic Alliance has condemned Russia’s carelessness in the case of the Russian drone, which exploded in Galati and says it will continue to strengthen its defence against all threats, including those posed by drones. The incident has caused a wave of international reactions condemning Moscow. The US ambassador to NATO, Matthew Whitaker, has condemned what he describes as ‘a reckless incursion into Romania’s territory: ‘we stand with our NATO ally Romania and condemn this reckless incursion into its territory. Our thoughts are with those injured in Galati. We will defend every inch of NATO territory.” Referring to the incident in Galati, the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen says that Russia’s war of aggression has crossed yet another line. The North Atlantic Alliance has denounced what it called Russia’s reckless behavior. The French Minister for European Affairs Benjamin Haddad says the incident in Romania proves that Russia is a threat to Europe’s security and the French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot has summoned the Russian ambassador in Paris for explanations as French soldiers are stationed on the Romanian territory. According to the Defence Ministry, since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, in February 2022, 90 drone attacks have been registered in Ukraine, close to its border with Romania. 28 violations of the Romanian airspace have been registered since then and in 12 situations, drone fragments have been discovered on the Romanian territory.
VISIT Romania’s Prime Minister, Ilie Bolojan, has interrupted his visit to the Republic of Moldova after a drone launched by the Russian Federation crashed into a block of flats in the Romanian city of Galati, eastern Romania. Bolojan held talks with the country’s President, Maia Sandu, and his Moldovan counterpart, Alexandru Munteanu. The talks focused on joint projects and cooperation between the two countries in the context of the consistent support Romania is offering the Republic of Moldova. Bolojan’s agenda also included visits to the Cultural Educational Center in Stauceni, a local development project implemented with support from the Romanian government.
TENNIS Romanian tennis player, Sorana Cirstea, is today playing in the round of sixteen of the Grand Slam tennis tournament of Roland Garros. Cirstea, ranking 18th in the world standings, will be up against Solana Sierra of Argentina. Cirstea won their first head-to-head match, 7-5, 6-0
MAE Romania’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a travel warning for the Portuguese Republic, which on June 3rd will be seeing an all-out strike at national level, which is expected to cause disruptions in the country’s transport system on the entire territory. Rail, road and air transports are expected to register delays or even cancellations. The Ministry has recommended the Romanian citizens to permanently check the information posted by various transport companies, mainly by the local air carriers and the latest updates by the local authorities. The Romanian citizens affected can ask for consular assistance at the phone numbers of the Romanian embassy in Lisbon, +351.213.966.463, or +351.213.960.866. A hot line for special situations has been opened by the Romanian diplomatic mission in Lisbon at +351. 927.411.628.
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