Russian attacks on Ukrainian Danube ports increasingly affect Romania and Moldova

The sharp intensification of Russian attacks on Ukraine’s Danube ports is increasingly affecting neighboring Romania and Moldova. The ports are located directly near the borders of both countries, meaning large-scale strikes on Ukraine’s Danube region are accompanied by falling debris and occasional incursions of drones into neighboring airspace.

According to Romania’s Digi24, Romanian Defense Ministry radars detected more than 100 drones near the country’s airspace in just four days. Several dozen were launched in swarms during seven attacks on Ukrainian Danube ports. Most were destroyed by Ukrainian air defenses while still over Ukraine, but debris from downed drones was later found along Romania’s Black Sea coast and the banks of the Danube.

The intensity of the attacks is forcing Romania to keep its air forces on heightened readiness. NATO fighter jets were scrambled seven times as a precaution during the same 96-hour period, while the readiness level of air-policing missions was raised nine times. Romania’s acting Defense Minister Radu Miruță described the recent intensity of attacks near the Romanian border as unprecedented.

On the night of August 16, a drone entered Romanian airspace from Moldova about 24 km north of Galați. It was shot down by a Spanish F-18 deployed as part of NATO’s air-policing mission. It was already the fourth drone shot down over Romania in 2026.

A similar incident occurred in Moldova the following day. On August 17, a Russian Banderol drone-missile violated Moldovan airspace and crashed in a corn field about 3 km from the village of Talmaza. The crash sparked a fire, but no casualties were reported.

The problem for neighboring countries is no longer limited to falling debris. The larger the attacks conducted directly near the border become, the greater the risk that a drone carrying a warhead or its debris could fall in a populated area of Romania or Moldova. So far, such incidents have caused no casualties, but at the current intensity of attacks, the risk is increasing that a future incident could result not only in fires or property damage, but also in loss of life.

For Ukraine, the escalation is also putting additional pressure on exports. Danube ports remain one of the country’s key routes for shipping grain, oilseeds and processed products amid ongoing problems with Black Sea logistics. The route is now facing both low water levels on the Danube and a sharp increase in the intensity of Russian attacks.

At the same time, the confrontation over export logistics is becoming increasingly reciprocal. Ukrainian strikes on Novorossiysk have already led to the shutdown of Russia’s main grain terminals, prompting Russia to seek alternative export routes. If attacks on Ukraine’s alternative port infrastructure continue, a further expansion of Ukrainian strikes on Russian logistics cannot be ruled out, including facilities through which Moscow may seek to redirect cargo flows. In this case, the confrontation over export routes could increasingly extend beyond the traditional Black Sea ports.

Tags: Danube ports, drones, Romania, Moldova, war