Theme: Romania

A Romanian court extended the pre-trial detention of Calin Georgescu by 30 days, in an investigation into an alleged 1.1-million-euro fraud case. The ruling by the Bucharest Court of Appeal overturned an October 13 decision by a lower court that ordered the pro-Russian former frontrunner in Romania's canceled 2024 presidential election to be moved from police custody to house arrest for 30 days. The court kept Georgescu and Ionel Rusen in detention until November 27, 2026, in a decision that is final.

Romania’s Intelligence Service said on Monday it had identified a sabotage network coordinated by Russia, which it believes was responsible for a fire in September at an industrial site in central Romania near a state-owned weapons company, the Jerusalem Post reported. Romanian President Nicusor Dan accused Russia of having significantly escalated attacks on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) eastern flank this month. Russia’s embassy in Bucharest could not be reached for comment outside business hours, but Moscow has repeatedly denied such accusations.

Romania's naval authority said the Comoros-flagged Khoryv, with a crew of 13 Ukrainian and Azerbaijani sailors, sent a distress signal 13 nautical miles off Romania's port of Constanta, just beyond Romanian territorial waters. Nine sailors were rescued, three were missing and one body was recovered. President Nicusor Dan told reporters the ship had been hit by a drone and described the episode as part of “Russia's escalation process” in its war in Ukraine. Ursula von der Leyen said in an online post she was “deeply alarmed by yet another Russian escalation in the Black Sea”. A civilian vessel carrying Ukrainian and Azerbaijani crew was struck off the coast of Romania, she said, and “these reckless attacks target innocent lives and openly defy international law”.

NATO will send maritime patrol aircraft, radar systems and drones to the Black Sea, after a series of deadly drone attacks on shipping in the region apparently linked to Russia's war in Ukraine, according to Reuters, in a text republished by US News. A US P-8 Poseidon has begun patrolling the Black Sea to conduct reconnaissance missions and detect any activity that could pose a risk, Radev said, according to Arab News. Last week, seven sailors were reported missing after drones struck two chemical tankers near Romania's Black Sea coast, setting them ablaze.

Romania’s Parliament voted on Tuesday to back the Cabinet proposed by Prime Minister-designate Luca Niculescu, an independent seeking to end a monthslong political crisis, according to the Associated Press. Niculescu was nominated on October 5, his fourth such nomination after three previous nominees failed to form a government.

Romanian F-16 fighter jets shot down two drones over the Black Sea some 20 kilometers southeast of the town of Sulina, moments after they had illegally entered the country, according to Le Monde. Romania’s Defense Ministry said two Romanian Air Force F-16s engaged the drones, according to TRT World. At least seven cargo vessels were hit by drones in the Black Sea this month, off the coasts of Romania and Bulgaria, members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), leaving two people dead and at least 25 missing, according to The Hindu; Romanian President Nicușor Dan said in Brussels that two drones had hit the vessels but did not say whose they were, and warned there would be a reaction from the Romanian state.

Drones struck two tankers near Romania’s Black Sea coast, setting them ablaze, leaving seven sailors missing, according to The Guardian. The missing crew were from the Wine Trader, a San Marino-flagged tanker travelling from Tunisia to Romania. The Wine Trader reported explosions and a fire about 13 nautical miles (24km) east of the mouth of the River Danube at Sulina on Thursday morning, according to the BBC. A NATO military source told Reuters the drones that hit the Wine Trader and the Yara J came from Russia, according to The Guardian. Romania’s president, Nicușor Dan, described the situation in the Black Sea as serious: “Commercial ships are being attacked and sunk,” he wrote on X.