Deutsche Welle
· collected 2026-09-26 · by Jacek Lepiarz, Keno Verseck
If Russian drones occasionally entered the airspace of countries like Poland or Romania, even official statements seemed strangely dismissive and abstract.
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statements → enter → Poland
Even after a Russian drone struck a high-rise apartment building in the eastern Romanian city of Galati in late May this year, many EU and NATO representatives hesitated to accuse Russia of intentional action.
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representatives → strike → action
The situation has changed radically since the summer.
asserted
situation → change → summer
Drone overflights have become almost daily in certain parts of central and southeastern Europe, and there have even been crashes and explosions, particularly in countries bordering Ukraine.
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overflights → become → Ukraine
Alerts are becoming more frequent, with authorities increasingly having to close airspace or suspend operations at airports, as unauthorized flights are detected.
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flights → become → airports
Russia has been bombing border crossings, infrastructure and trains in Ukraine, but very close to other borders.
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Russia → bomb → borders
For the Baltic states, Poland, Moldova and Romania in particular, the war has long ceased to be "hybrid."
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war → cease → states
More and more, politicians in these countries are saying that Russia is acting deliberately.
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Russia → say → countries
Drones violate Moldovan and Romanian airspace
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Drones → violate → airspace
This became evident this week in an unprecedented manner.
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This → become → manner
Moldova recorded four drones entering Moldovan airspace, two of which exploded in Moldovan territory.
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two → record → territory
Wreckage of another was also found.
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Wreckage → find → another
The country's northern airspace was closed temporarily.
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airspace → close → ?
Two drones also violated Romanian airspace; with one crashing near the northern town of Solca.
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one → violate → Solca
A nearby border crossing with Ukraine a few dozen kilometers away was closed as a result.
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crossing → close → result
NATO aircraft were scrambled near the Danube Delta.
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aircraft → scramble → Delta
The scrambling of NATO aircraft has become more common in response to Russian air attacks in Ukraine.
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scrambling → become → Ukraine
In Poland, NATO fighter jets were scrambled twice in response to Russian attacks near the border with Ukraine.
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jets → scramble → Ukraine
Two Polish border crossings were evacuated after a fire broke out at a Starlink ground station near the village of Wola Krobowska, 40 kilomters (ca. 25 miles) south of the Polish capital Warsaw, on Wednesday night.
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fire → evacuate → night
The station is used to route internet traffic through Poland to Ukraine.
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station → use → Ukraine
On the same day, a Russian Mi-8 helicopter violated Polish airspace and remained there for 42 seconds according to the Polish military.
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helicopter → violate → military
Polish Prime Minister Tusk says Europe needs to prepare
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk spoke very bluntly in Krakow on Thursday and said that Russia was refining its "disgusting forms of pressure" and Poland must be prepared for them.
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Poland → say → them
Russian President Vladimir Putin "wants to exhaust Ukraine by destroying its industrial and energy infrastructure, but he also wants to exhaust Europe," Tusk said.
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Tusk → want → Europe
He added that there was a suspicion that the fire at the Starlink ground station had been deliberate.
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fire → add → station
Earlier this month, Tusk had already warned the Polish parliament that there might be Russian drone and even missile attacks against those who supported Ukraine.
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who → warn → Ukraine
Moldovan President Maia Sandu also reacted very strongly on Thursday, saying that Russia's war was a danger to all of Europe and reasserting Moldova's support for Ukraine.
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war → react → Ukraine
Defense Minister Radu Miruta said that not more than a "diplomatic protest" was needed, though he acknowledged that the drone that had crashed in Solca had new technical features, which suggested it could be a newer type of Russian jet-powered drone.
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it → say → drone
In New York on Wednesday, in his address to the United Nations General Assembly, Romanian President Nicusor Dan had said: "We are in the fifth year of the illegal, unprovoked and unjustified war of aggression waged on a large scale against Ukraine by a permanent member of the Security Council."
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We → say → Council
He had added that as the "EU member state with the longest border with Ukraine, Romania has directly felt the effects of this war through repeated violations of our airspace."
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Romania → add → airspace
And he too reasserted support for Ukraine:
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he → reassert → Ukraine
"We have said it before, and we say it again: Romania will stand with Ukraine and its people, who are acting in legitimate self-defense, for as long as it takes."
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it → say → defense
Meanwhile, there is growing speculation that Russia could expand its war to Western Europe.
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Russia → be → Europe
On Thursday, the Spanish newspaper El Mundo published information about a CIA report warning that Russia could be preparing drone attacks on Italy, France and Spain.
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Russia → publish → Italy
The attacks could be launched from international waters in the Mediterranean and from vessels that were part of Russia's shadow fleet.
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that → launch → fleet
French President Emmanuel Macron said that that the CIA had not informed France of this information, but he did say that the possibility Russia could launch an attack against Europe was "plausible."
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Russia → say → Europe
At a press conference in Denmark on Thursday, politicians and military officials warned that Russia was expected to intensify its hybrid war against the West and NATO in the coming months.
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Russia → warn → months
The situation is currently the most serious since the end of the Cold War," said Defense Minister Jeppe Bruus.
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Bruus → say → War
This article was originally published in German.
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article → publish → German
The Aporia
