Romania's Defence Ministry radar surveillance system detected an air target on Monday, 21 September, flying approximately 12 kilometres north of Chilia near the Romanian border. Two Romanian Air Force F-16 aircraft took off to monitor the situation.

The aircraft were performing Air Policing duty at the 86th Air Base in Borcea. The National Military Command Centre notified the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, and residents in northern Tulcea County received a RO-ALERT message.

According to the Defence Ministry, no incursion by the target into national airspace was reported. Scrambling fighter aircraft is a preventive surveillance and response measure and does not, by itself, demonstrate that Romania was attacked.

The Danube Delta border region is being monitored amid attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure. Any update concerning the target's route, discovered debris or additional measures should be taken only from the competent authorities' statements.

Official Defence Ministry communications remain the primary reference for details of the detection, the air-policing mission and the absence of a confirmed incursion into Romanian airspace.

The headline and text do not claim that a drone entered national territory. Any further information about the nature of the target should be verified against official statements.

Source consulted: AGERPRES — țintă aeriană detectată la nord de Chilia