CHISINAU, June 8 – An unmanned aircraft entered Moldovan airspace during the early hours of Monday, with explosive debris later discovered in farmland close to the Ukrainian border near the eastern community of Lopatna, according to Moldova’s defense ministry.
The country’s monitoring systems tracked the aircraft entering Moldovan territory at 12:20 a.m. local time (2120 GMT) Monday, coming from the Mihailovca-Lopatna area, ministry officials reported.
“It was confirmed that fragments from an unmanned aerial vehicle were found on an agricultural field near the Lopatna locality,” the ministry stated in their announcement.
Evidence at the location showed “the previous occurrence of an explosion,” officials added.
The defense ministry referenced a Russian nighttime assault on nearby Ukraine and indicated the aircraft debris would undergo analysis to determine its source and the circumstances surrounding the incident.
“What happened underscores the risks and consequences that the Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine poses to regional security and neighbouring states,” Moldova’s foreign ministry declared in their statement.
The country has experienced multiple instances of Russian unmanned aircraft entering its airspace or wreckage falling in border regions.
On Sunday, President Maia Sandu stated that the Ukrainian conflict demonstrated her nation’s urgent need for advanced interceptor drone technology, noting that new laws would be necessary to enable their production.
