Journalist and writer Cristian Tudor Popescu criticizes President Nicușor Dan after the decision of the Romanian authorities regarding the expulsion of the Russian consul from Constanța, in the context of the drone that crashed on the block in Galați, and asks an uncomfortable question about the recent statement offered by the head of state to the BBC station.
“If the proven Russian drone, which was going about its business, killing Ukrainian women and children, was diverted towards the women and children of Galati by an anti-aircraft strike of the Ukrainian army, as President Dan told the BBC publication, without providing any evidence, then why are we still expelling the Russian consul?”, wrote Cristian Tudor Popescu, in a short post published on his Facebook page.
“So that Mr. Dan can get votes from pro-European Romanians and anti-Ukraine and anti-EU Romanians? At the cost of fueling the latest conspiracy theory, like Ukraine pushed the drone into Romania to get us into the war?”, the journalist concluded his online message, entitled “The gentle lamb sucks two sheep”.
On Saturday, in a telephone interview granted to the BBC, President Nicușor Dan said that the measure to close the consulate in Constanța “represents a warning to the Russian side and I hope they will stop”.
“If not, there are other measures we can take against them,” the head of state continued. Asked by the BBC reporter what, concretely, these measures would be that Romania would take, if such incursions with Russian drones continue, Nicușor Dan said: “The expulsion of the ambassador, for example. Yes, there is this hierarchy of measures that can be taken at the diplomatic level.”
On Friday, the president announced the closure of the Russian Consulate in Constanța, describing the incident related to the crash of the Russian drone on the Galati block as “the most serious security incident on Romanian territory since the beginning of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine”, after a CSAT meeting, which he convened.
Ukrainian political scientist, critics of Nicușor Dan
The statements of the head of state were also criticized by Anton Shekhovtsov, one of the best-known political scientists and political science specialists in Ukraine.
In a message published on Sunday night on his Facebook page, Shekhovtsov singled out a comment by Nicușor Dan related to the Russian attack against Ukraine that led to the fall of that drone in Galati, as a result of the impact two people were injured.
The president said that the situation in the region is dangerous and emphasized that “it has become dangerous for Romanian citizens”. “And when the Russians target localities on the other side of the Danube, they must ensure that they do not cause injuries among Romanian citizens,” added Nicușor Dan.
“Oh wow. Romanian President Nicușor Dan is asking the Russians to be more precise when targeting Ukraine. I'm speechless,” Anton Shekhovtsov commented.
In a separate message that he published on Monday, the Ukrainian political scientist also criticized President Nicușor Dan's claim that the Russian drone fell on the block in Galati after being hit by Ukraine's air defense and deviated from its route. The president repeated this claim in the BBC interview, after he also said it in comments made shortly after the incident.
“You wonder where Dan got this information in the first place. But I think I know what happened. A Russian drone hit an apartment building in Romania last week, injuring two people. As a result, a debate arose in Romania about whether this incident would warrant NATO Article 4 consultations,” Shekhovtsov said.
“With NATO facing difficult times due to a lack of trust in the United States, Romania's allies probably advised Dan not to activate Article 4, as this would have created concern across Europe ahead of an unpredictable NATO summit in Ankara in July, and he agreed,” the Ukrainian political scientist speculated.
