Romania, Moldova Report ‘Weather Balloon’ Objects Traversing Airspace, Prompting Safety Concerns

A Romanian Air Force MiG-21 LanceR performs during the International Air Tattoo at RAF Fairford in Fairford, England, on July 21, 2019. Matthew Horwood/Getty Images

Officials in Romania reported seeing strange balloon-like objects traversing their skies on Feb. 14, shortly after neighboring Moldova temporarily shut down its airspace after similar sightings, according to officials.

The incidents occurred around midday local time and come shortly after a number of objects, including a high-altitude Chinese surveillance balloon, were detected in American airspace and were subsequently shot down.

Romania’s defense ministry said it had deployed two Romanian Air Force MiG-21 LanceR jets to an area in the southeast of the country about 10 minutes after the unknown object was spotted in its airspace.

The defense ministry said the object had “characteristics similar to a weather balloon” and was initially detected by radar systems in Romanian airspace at an altitude of about 11,000 meters (36,000 feet).

The jets stayed in the area for 30 minutes but “did not confirm the presence of the aerial target, neither visually nor on the onboard radars,” and subsequently returned to base, a ministry statement said.

Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu told reporters at the U.N. headquarters in New York that there was no threat to Romanian airspace.

Hours earlier, Moldova, which borders Romania and Ukraine, briefly closed its airspace for undisclosed safety and security reasons.

A high-altitude balloon floats over Billings, Mont., on Feb. 1, 2023. Larry Mayer/The Billings Gazette via AP

‘Similar to a Weather Balloon’

Air Moldova, the country’s national airline, announced the closure on Facebook at about 2 p.m. local time.

“Dear passengers, at this moment, the airspace of the Republic of Moldova is closed. We are waiting for the resumption of flights,” Air Moldova said.

In an updated post at about 3:17 p.m. local time, the airline said the airspace had been reopened.

Elsewhere, the government’s Telegram channel, Prima Sursa, also announced the airspace closure and subsequent reopening.

“Following the meeting of the Interdepartmental Airspace Management Commission, a NOTAM was issued on the temporary closure of the airspace of the Republic of Moldova at 11:24 in order to ensure civil aviation flight safety. As reported by the Civil Aviation Authority, the airspace was reopened at 14:47,” the statement reads, according to Ukrinform.

Separately, Moldova’s civil aviation authority later said that the object resembled a “weather balloon” but noted that “given the weather conditions and the impossibility of monitoring and identifying the object as well as its flight path ... the decision was taken to temporarily close the airspace.”

The incident in Moldova came just hours after Russia denied claims that it was planning to overthrow the Moldovan government after Moldovan President Maia Sandu accused the Kremlin of planning to use foreign saboteurs to bring down her country’s leadership and prevent it from joining the European Union.

Sandu said on Feb. 13 in a news briefing that Russia also planned to use Moldova in its war against Ukraine.

“The Kremlin’s attempts to bring violence to Moldova will not work. Our main goal is the security of citizens and the state. Our goal is peace and public order in the country,” Sandu said.

Her comments came shortly after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Feb. 9 that his country had uncovered plans by the Russian secret service “for the destruction of Moldova.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during an expanded meeting of the Russian Defence Ministry Board at the National Defence Control Centre in Moscow, on Dec. 21, 2022. Sergey Fadeichev/Sputnik/AFP via Getty Images

Russia Denies Plot to Overthrow Moldovan Government

On Feb. 10, Moldova’s pro-West prime minister resigned after 18 months in power.

However, Russia on Feb. 14 dismissed the allegations made by Sandu and Zelenskyy, calling them “completely unfounded.”

“Such claims are completely unfounded and unsubstantiated,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said, according to The Moscow Times.

“Unlike Western countries and Ukraine, we do not interfere in the internal affairs of Moldova and other countries of the world,” the ministry said. Russia “does not pose a threat to the security of the Republic of Moldova” and “stable and friendly relations” with Russia could benefit Moldova, it added.

Meanwhile, Washington said it was “deeply concerned” by reports of the alleged Russian plot to destabilize Moldova’s government but said it sees no direct military threat to Moldova at this time.

In a statement on Feb. 14, State Department spokesman Ned Price said that Russia “has a long history of malign influence both in Moldova and the region, and as such we’ve worked closely with Moldova to build its political resilience and to counter long-term efforts by Russia to undermine Moldova’s democratic institutions.”

The sightings of the unidentified objects across Romania and Moldova come at a time of heightened tensions between the West and China following the detection and shootdown of a Chinese spy balloon over America.

The Chinese regime said it was a civilian meteorological balloon that had accidentally drifted off course, but Washington said it was likely a sophisticated high-altitude spying vehicle conducting surveillance over sensitive U.S. military sites, including nuclear bases in Montana.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.