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Romania finds unexploded projectile in village near Ukraine border

By Thomson Reuters May 16, 2026 | 12:05 PM

BUCHAREST, May 16 (Reuters) – An unexploded projectile was discovered on a property in southeastern Romania near the European Union ​and NATO member’s border with ‌Ukraine on Saturday, its defence ministry said.

Romania shares a 650-km (400-mile) land border with Ukraine. Russian drones attacking Ukraine’s ports on the Danube river have ‌repeatedly ​breached its airspace and ⁠fragments have sometimes fallen ⁠on its territory as Ukrainian forces shoot them down.

What the ministry described as an unguided reactive projectile was found in ​the yard of an uninhabited house in the village of Pardina in ⁠Romania’s Tulcea county, it ⁠said in a statement. The ministry ​did not indicate its suspected origin.

“Technical verifications ​confirmed the presence of 2 kg worth ‌of explosives in the projectile’s body,” the statement said, adding that the area’s perimeter had been secured.

Last month, an explosive ⁠drone landed in a backyard in the city of Galati, marking the first time since the ⁠start of ‌the Ukraine war that such ⁠an incident had damaged property ​in ‌Romania.

The leaders of NATO’s 14 eastern ​flank nations ⁠this week said Russia’s repeated violations of their airspace underlined the urgent need to consolidate the alliance’s air defences against missiles and drones.

(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by ​Joe Bavier)