Moldova says five Russian missiles, drones violated airspace and exploded on its territory

CHISINAU — Moldova said Saturday that five Russian aerial weapons, including Banderol missiles and drones, violated its airspace and exploded on its territory.President Maia Sandu warned that Moscow’s attacks on neighboring Ukraine were increasingly threatening her country.“Russia’s attacks on Ukraine are dangerously reaching Moldova,” Sandu said on X. “Moscow is putting lives at risk across Europe and must be stopped.”Moldova’s Foreign Ministry separately “strongly condemned” what it described as violations of the country’s airspace.The ministry said drone fragments were discovered outside Causeni, near the village of Dubovca, between Delacau and Puhaceni, and near Crocmaz, where an incident caused a vegetation fire and property damage.“Russia’s war against Ukraine continues to pose concrete threats to our country and to the security of the entire region,” the ministry said.Moscow did not immediately comment on the latest allegations.The incident came two days after Moldova summoned Russia’s ambassador to Chisinau and handed him a note of protest after three drones allegedly violated Moldovan airspace in a single day.The Foreign Ministry said two of those drones crashed and exploded on Moldovan territory, adding that the country’s airspace had been violated eight times over the previous seven days.Russian Ambassador Oleg Ozerov accused Moldovan authorities of ignoring Moscow’s proposals for a joint investigation into incidents involving drones crashing in the country.“We are fed up with unsubstantiated accusations,” Ozerov told Russia’s state-run Tass news agency after visiting the Moldovan Foreign Ministry. “We have received no evidence that the drone is of Russian origin.”