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Fox News
6 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
NATO member scrambles jets after Russian drone attack, as Witkoff meets with Putin
Romania was forced to scramble F-16 jets after Russia carried out a strike just half a mile from the NATO nation's territory. The country's Ministry of National Defense (MApN) confirmed in a post on X that Russia carried out a drone attack near its border. "On the night of August 5-6, the Russian forces launched a massive drone attack on the civilian infrastructure in the Ismail area, Ukraine, in the vicinity of the border with Romania," Romania's defense ministry wrote in a post on X. "The radar systems of the MApN detected air targets in Ukrainian space, close to Tulcea County. At 1:10a.m., the population in the north of the county was warned via RO-Alert," the ministry added. RO-Alert is Romania's official emergency warning system. The defense ministry stated that two F-16 fighter jets took off "to monitor the national airspace," but no "unauthorized intrusions" were detected. The ministry said it would carry out checks in the area and keep NATO allies updated in real time. The drones reportedly struck oil and gas pipelines at the Orlivka plant in Odesa, Ukraine. Bright orange flames and plumes of smoke were visible across the Danube River. Nearby Lithuania has also suffered from Russia's war on Ukraine. Drones from Putin ally Belarus crossed into its territory, according to Lithuanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Kęstutis Budrys, who said he spoke with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. "These repeated incidents represent an alarming sign of the spillover of Russia's aggression against [Ukraine] onto [NATO territory]," Budrys said of the incident. "We cannot compromise the security of our country and citizens, nor the integrity of NATO airspace. We must remain vigilant, as the threat is real and growing." This attack could signal that Russian President Vladimir Putin is not moving closer to reaching a ceasefire deal, despite President Donald Trump's Friday deadline. It's unclear whether Special Envoy Steve Witkoff's visit will push the Russian leader to move toward peace. However, if Moscow fails to make a deal by Friday, the U.S. will impose sanctions on Russia and potentially secondary tariffs. Trump is reportedly putting pressure on Witkoff's visit. One person close to the administration told the Financial Times that "if Witkoff comes back empty-handed, with absolutely nothing, Trump is going to go ballistic." Witkoff reportedly spent about three hours at the Kremlin and, according to Russian investment envoy Kirill Dmitriev, the "dialogue will prevail," Reuters reported. Before setting the deadline, Trump reportedly spoke with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy about securing a deal that would end the brutal war more than three years after Russia's invasion. Zelenskyy later confirmed the conversation took place, saying that the "key focus" was ending the war. "Today, we coordinated our positions – Ukraine and the United States. We exchanged assessments of the situation: The Russians have intensified the brutality of their attacks. President Trump is fully informed about Russian strikes on Kyiv and other cities and communities," Zelenskyy wrote on X.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Romania issues air-raid warning over Russian drone attack on Ukraine for second night in a row
Residents of the northern district of Tulcea in Romania received an air-raid warning on the night of 29-30 January because of a Russian drone attack near the Romanian border. Source: Digi24, as reported by European Pravda Details: Romania's Ministry of National Defence's monitoring and surveillance systems reported drones in Ukraine's airspace near the border. The RO-Alert message, sent out at around 04:00, informed the population of the possibility of UAVs falling from the airspace and urged them to take shelter. The air-raid warning lasted 90 minutes. A similar message was sent out on the night of 28-29 January after Russia attacked port infrastructure in Ukraine. The Ministry of Defence reported that two Romanian F-16s, part of the air policing combat service, took off from the 86th Air Base in Borca at around 03:40. The jets returned to the base around 05:00. The data provided by the Romanian Air Force's radar systems do not indicate that drones have entered Romanian airspace. However, the Defence Ministry stated that it will perform searches throughout the day in locations where threats may occur as a result of these situations, as well as continuing aerial monitoring flights. Allied structures are also kept up to date on the developments resulting from the attacks. Background: The wreckage of attack drones used by Russia to attack Ukrainian ports has been repeatedly found in the border area on the Romanian bank of the Danube. On 29 September 2024, NATO began additional surveillance of Romanian airspace, deploying another Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft. At the end of October 2024, it was reported that the Romanian Ministry of Defence had prepared a draft law that would allow the shooting down of drones that violate the country's airspace. Support UP or become our patron!
