Eleven days ago, in an interview conducted with Iulian Fota, an expert in national security and former Secretary of State in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, he told me that many of those who came to Bucharest for the B9 Summit informally asked why Romania does not shoot down Russian drones violating the country’s airspace.
„But why don’t you shoot down the drones? Who gives the order to fire? The pilots? The Minister? So these people had uncertainties. Important uncertainties that can cost us…”, said Iulian Fota on May 17. It didn’t take long before we reached the point where Romanian citizens are paying for these „uncertainties.”
At the beginning of August 2023, Russia’s first drones entered Romanian airspace and crashed on the territory of Romania, causing explosions and fires in the villages of Ceatalchioi and Plauru in Tulcea County.
Many may remember that the initial reaction of the Ministry of Defense, led at the time by Angel Tîlvăr (PSD), was to hide from the public the existence of drone debris and even the attacks.
Luckily, several locals filmed the drones and the explosions they caused when they crashed and posted them on social media.
Several journalists then went to the Danube Delta, to the affected villages, to speak with the people and search for drone debris. It was a moment of shock for public opinion and embarrassment for Klaus Iohannis and the PSD-PNL coalition when the press debunked the official lie.
I was one of those who wrote several articles on-site, after conducting interviews with the locals affected by the attack and with representatives of local authorities. Do you know what the political leaders' reaction was after the disaster and the precariousness of the country's border defense were presented? Klaus Iohannis, the president at the time, went to the Delta with his wife to show the nation that the area was safe.
Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, the main concern of the Romanian state has been to minimize the crisis, and the second has been to conceal the assistance provided to our neighbors, as limited as it was.
Thus, in four years of war, due to a catastrophic political vision, we have a pro-Russian party with 40% public support, led by a Kremlin influence agent. Also, a candidate manipulated by Vladimir Putin and Russia's influence networks in the country almost became the president of Romania, with the elections being canceled at the last minute.
Moreover, in three years, 28 drones entered unhindered, some exploding on Romanian territory, without any reaction from the armed forces.
Sentenced to Failure
Personally, when I hear the Ministry of Defense spokesperson announcing: "Two F-16 aircraft took off...", I feel sick. I am filled with anger mixed with helplessness when I realize that an entire nation has become a laughingstock for people pretending to work.
How can you announce that the Romanian state's main reaction, after four years of war when the entire defense ecosystem has fundamentally changed, is the takeoff of two F-16 planes? It's as if no one in the Romanian defense system understood anything about what is happening on the Ukrainian front, how the Russians act, how Kiev's forces defend themselves.
When I was working with NATO's Deputy Secretary General, Mircea Geoană, I interacted, at one point, with a Romanian official holding a very important position at the Alliance's Headquarters in Brussels. An incident related to Russia had occurred, and I asked why the Romanian Army is not more efficient in the face of military challenges. He gave me a series of technical explanations, but also a political response that shocked me: "Because the philosophy of Romanian decision-makers is not to disturb Russia!" I do not have the approval of this official, and therefore, I do not give his name. But the information is of public interest...
Silviu Sergiu, Independent News journalist, former consultant to presidential candidate Mircea Geoană, in a Facebook post
With all due respect for the effort, risks taken, and professionalism of military pilots, but asking F-16 planes to shoot down drones is like slinging at flies.
They have a different role, different capabilities, and different missions in the country's security architecture.
And if you have already lifted them off the ground, the entire context must be created through early warning, rapid target identification, and reaction, so that the F-16 pilots can safely destroy the drones without endangering the population.
We hear the same helpless litany every time - the pilots had the right to fire, but they didn't because it posed a danger to civilians. This only means that the entire procedure is wrong and doomed to failure.
I don't think Ukrainians would mind if we shoot down a Russian drone before it crosses Romania's border, on their territory, if it is confirmed to be on the route violating the national airspace.
Response to Russia's Attack, Closing a Consulate That Should Have Been Closed for Four Years
Does anyone at the Ministry of Defense understand that lifting combat aircraft off the ground without destroying drones that have entered our airspace represents a failure of the military forces? Furthermore, it also signifies an encouragement to Russia, which escalates the conflict mission by mission, using our hesitations to provoke NATO.
It must be emphasized that no matter how much we criticize the institutions, they will not change without a political decision, without courage and commitment from the elected leaders. If they do not realize the danger, if they do not react and mobilize people, if they fail to form a favorable public opinion to achieve Romania's strategic objectives and allow the country to be governed by Kremlin networks, then we deserve our fate.
President Nicușor Dan emerged after the CSAT meeting, delivering a dry speech announcing who was responsible for the attack, which was good, but the response was weak - the closure of a consulate that should have been closed since February 24, 2022, when Russia attacked Ukraine.
He did not answer the journalists' questions and admitted that the current national security issue will only be resolved in the next two years.
I hope that this catastrophe in Galați, which, fortunately for us, did not turn into a tragedy, serves as a wake-up call for those in decision-making positions and finally leads to the radical change in military response strategy and communication. Otherwise, innocent people will soon die.