Spain’s Foreign Ministry summons Russian ambassador to protest Russian drone strike in Romania

Eduardo González The Spanish Foreign Ministry summoned the Russian ambassador to Madrid, Yuri Klimenko, on Friday to convey Spain's condemnation of the Russian drone strike on a building in Galati, a Romanian town bordering Ukraine, which injured two people. "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation summoned the Russian ambassador to Madrid on Friday to convey Spain's condemnation of the incursion last night by a Russian drone into Romanian airspace, a member of the EU and a NATO ally," Foreign Ministry sources told The Diplomat. "The Ministry described this incident, which injured two people in a residential building in Galati, as very serious and expressed Spain's full solidarity with Romania and Ukraine," they added. Hours earlier, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares condemned “the incursion of a Russian drone into Romania that struck a residential building, causing injuries.” “All my solidarity and support to Romania and to Oana Toiu (Romanian Foreign Minister), a partner and ally in NATO,” the minister posted on social media. “Spain will continue to support peace in Ukraine and European security,” he concluded. Later, Albares spoke with his Romanian counterpart, Oana Toiu, to whom he conveyed "Spain's solidarity and support in the face of the incursion of a Russian drone into Romanian and European territory" and announced that the Russian ambassador would be summoned "as a sign of protest." "My solidarity also extends to the Romanian community in Spain," he added via social media. For her part, Toiu posted a message of thanks to Albares (and other counterparts, such as Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha) “for their solidarity” and affirmed: “We stand strong together.” The Russian drone struck a residential building in Galați on Friday. According to the Romanian government, the drone caused a fire and minor injuries to two people who have been hospitalized: a 53-year-old woman and a 14-year-old boy, both with burns. This is not the first Russian drone to enter Romanian airspace since the start of the war in Ukraine in February 2022 (the two countries share more than 600 kilometers of border), but it is the first to hit a residential building. “Romania will not accept that the war of aggression waged by Russia against Ukraine be transferred to its citizens,” declared President Nikusor Dan, whose government has summoned the Russian ambassador and ordered a “firm response” from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dan also requested assistance from NATO and the EU and announced that he will appeal to the UN Security Council (of which Russia is a permanent member) to denounce this “brutal violation of international law.” For its part, NATO has condemned this “prudence on the part of Russia,” and its Secretary General, Mark Rutte, denounced at a press conference that “Russia’s reckless behavior poses a danger to us all.” “NATO continues to strengthen its readiness to deter and defend” and is “prepared to defend every inch of allied territory,” added the Secretary General, who personally conveyed to President Dan the “absolute solidarity” of the 32 allies. The US ambassador to the Alliance, Matthew Whitaker, has pledged to defend “every inch of NATO territory,” and the British Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper, has also condemned “Russia’s violation of NATO airspace,” an “extremely dangerous and reckless” action. For her part, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Kaja Kallas, declared that "Moscow cannot be allowed to violate European airspace with impunity," the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, warned that "Russia's war of aggression has crossed another line," and the President of the European Council, António Costa, denounced the "reckless and irresponsible escalation" by Russia.

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