By Reuters November 30, 2025, 11:37:29 AM IST (Published)
Moldovan authorities said on Saturday, November 29, that Russian drones had entered the country’s airspace, posing a threat to aviation, in the third such incident in nine days.
President Maia Sandu, who aims to bring Moldova into the European Union by 2030, has denounced Russia’s war in Ukraine and accused Moscow of attempting to destabilise the ex‑Soviet state lying between Ukraine and EU member Romania.
The latest intrusion coincided with a large Russian attack on Kyiv and other Ukrainian targets that killed three people and wounded nearly 30. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia had launched about 36 missiles and nearly 600 drones.
Moldova’s interior ministry said it had identified two drones as Russian and that they flew over Moldovan territory, prompting the closure of its airspace. The drones later flew into Ukrainian territory, the ministry added.
“In the course of this incident, which posed a serious threat to flight safety, Moldova’s airspace was closed for an hour and 10 minutes from 22.43 to 23.53 (2043 to 2153 GMT) on the orders of the civil aviation authority,” the ministry said.
Sandu wrote on X: “On their way to kill civilians, Russian drones again violated Moldovan airspace, forcing its temporary closure. We condemn these attacks and stand with Ukraine.”
Moldova, which reported similar intrusions on November 20 and earlier in the week, described the latest incident as intimidation linked to the conflict in Ukraine and decried “illegal and dangerous actions posing a threat to civil flights and peoples’ lives.”
Russia’s Ambassador to Moldova, Oleg Ozerov, has been repeatedly summoned to the foreign ministry over the incidents. Ozerov suggested the events were aimed at worsening already poor relations between Moscow and Chisinau.
Since Sandu’s election in 2020, Moscow has accused Moldova of unfriendly actions and stoking anti‑Russian sentiment.
