Romanian president urges stronger NATO presence in Black Sea after drone strikes on ships

Romanian President Nicușor Dan has called for greater NATO oversight in the Black Sea, warning that the region will remain unsafe until Russia’s war in Ukraine ends. Speaking to Euronews on the sidelines of an EU summit in Brussels, Dan said that frequent drone incursions into Romanian territory, which began roughly a year and a half ago, had caught Bucharest unprepared, and that the country now faces a similar lack of readiness to its east. “At the Black Sea, we are in the same situation,” Dan said. “We have to protect the water under our territory.” He stressed the economic importance of securing the sea for Ukraine and the wider region, adding: “I’m very optimistic that we’ll have the support and the capabilities in order to be better protected.”

Drone attacks on commercial shipping

In the days leading up to the Brussels meeting, drones damaged commercial vessels in the Black Sea off the coasts of Bulgaria and Romania. At least one ship sank after an attack last week, and two seafarers were killed. Neither Sofia nor Bucharest has definitively blamed Russia for the strikes, though Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said earlier in the week that “logic” would suggest the Kremlin stood to benefit from the deadly incursions.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking after a meeting with European leaders on Thursday, said the incidents showed Russia was testing Europe’s response. He noted that drones had crossed airspace and borders in Romania, Poland, Germany, Moldova and Bulgaria, and that a corresponding drone was found at an airport in Leipzig. “Violating another country’s airspace is already an incursion,” Zelenskyy said.

Allied support and NATO posture

Dan and Radev met with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte to push for stronger support. Bulgaria requested combat aircraft and anti-drone systems during the talks. Rutte said NATO would continue to strengthen its posture along the eastern flank and expand counter-drone capabilities. “NATO will continue to work closely with our allies in the Black Sea, adjusting our deterrence and defence posture as needed,” he wrote on social media platform X.

Dan also expressed confidence in continued US support from President Donald Trump, citing Romania’s strategic position. “On defence, I think it’s a mutual benefit between us because we have an excellent position to project force towards other parts of the world,” he said. After the summit, Dan told reporters that France had pledged “necessary equipment” and to “better understand our specific requirements in the Black Sea.”