The war in Ukraine has posed a threat to at least six more European countries.
Over the course of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, missile fragments and debris from drones have been found in the territories of at least six neighboring European countries, reports Verstka.
Missiles have most frequently entered Moldova's territory, including the unrecognized region of Transnistria. The first such case was reported on October 31, 2022, when debris from a Russian missile intercepted by Ukrainian air defense systems was found in the village of Naslavcha in the northern part of the country. Naslavcha is separated from Ukraine by the Dniester River. After this incident, Moldovan authorities, including those in the unrecognized Transnistrian region, reported finding missile fragments on six more occasions. These discoveries occurred on December 5 near the city of Briceni, on January 14 in the Briceni district, on February 16 in the village of Larga, on September 25 in the village of Kitzkany in the unrecognized Transnistrian Moldavian Republic, on September 28 near the village of Farladany, and on October 5 in the village of Giska. Additionally, on February 10, the Ministry of Defense of Moldova confirmed that a Russian missile had entered the country's airspace.
Missiles and drones were discovered on Romanian territory on six different occasions. The first incident involved a Ukrainian Bayraktar drone, which was found on May 11, 2022, in Romania's territorial waters between Sulina and Sfântu-Gheorghe. It was presumed to have crashed earlier, on May 7 or 8. Eight months later, on January 16, missile debris was found in the largest Romanian seaport, Constanta. In September, reports of Russian drones being discovered occurred three times: on September 4 and 9 near the village of Plauru and on the 13th in the Tulcea county. On October 12, near Plauru, the impact crater from a Russian drone was discovered once again. Additionally, on September 26, 2023, the Russian shelling caused damage to the ferry checkpoint "Orlivka" on the Ukraine-Romania border.
Missile debris was found in Poland twice. The first incident occurred in the vicinity of the village of Pszczowa on the border with Ukraine on November 15. According to a report by the Polish publication Rzeczpospolita, citing the investigation by Poland's National Prosecution Office, the missile was launched from Ukrainian territory. On that day, Russia was conducting massive shelling of Ukraine, and Ukrainian air defense missiles were launched in pairs to increase their effectiveness. One of the missiles, for unknown reasons, did not explode and fell in Poland, resulting in two fatalities. The second time, a missile was found in the city of Bydgoszcz on April 25, and this one was of Russian origin. Polish authorities claim it fell in December.
Missile debris was found three times in Bulgaria and twice in Belarus. On July 22, 2022, debris from a Russian anti-aircraft missile system "Pantsir-S1" was discovered on the coast of Bulgaria between the cities of Pomorie and Aheloy, as reported by the Bulgarian publication Nova. On September 17, a drone was found near the Bulgarian resort of Tyulenovo, and a week later, in Sozopol, located 230 km away, fragments of a missile were found. In Belarus, the first report of a missile falling was on April 7, 2022, when debris was discovered approximately one kilometer from the village of Tereblichi. The second missile fell in the area of the village of Horbaha, located 15 km from the Ukrainian border. It was also reported that on August 5, 2023, Kinzhals crossed Belarusian airspace.
One Soviet reconnaissance drone, the Tu-141 "Strizh," finally crashed in Zagreb, Croatia. This occurred on the night of March 11, 2023. After studying photographs of the wreckage, Tyler Rogoway, an analyst from the War Zone project, concluded that the malfunctioning UAV, flying over Romania and Hungary, crashed in Croatian territory. The Ukrainian side stated that this was not their drone. The Russian Embassy in Zagreb also disassociated itself from the UAV, claiming that it was "manufactured on Ukrainian territory," and Russia had not used such drones since 1991.
