Senior NATO admiral dismisses Romanian drone situation as accident
According to Admiral Guiseppe Cavo Dragone, the incident was not an attack on the alliance
DOHA, June 2. /TASS/. The recent incident involving a drone that crashed onto the roof of a residential building in Romania was an accident, not an attack on the North Atlantic Alliance, said Admiral Guiseppe Cavo Dragone, the chair of the NATO Military Committee.
"This is an accident, of course. It is not an action against us, it’s not an attack," the Italian admiral told Al Arabiya television when asked to comment on the bloc’s reaction to the incident and its commitment to defend "every inch" of allied territory in the event of incidents similar to the Romanian one.
The bloc is already taking action and reinforcing its eastern flank in Europe as it is also considering to "put some more effort there," Dragone added.
On May 29, the Romanian Defense Ministry reported that a drone had crashed onto the roof of an apartment building in Galati. Bucharest blamed the incident on Russia.
On Friday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in response to a TASS reporter’s question that the incident involving a UAV in Romania was most likely caused by a Ukrainian drone. Stray Ukrainian drones have previously flown into European countries, and "in this situation, I also believe that it is most likely the case," the Russian leader argued. According to him, Russia is ready to conduct an impartial investigation if the wreckage of the drone is handed over to it.