Greek Defense Minister: Ukrainian drone could have caused mass casualties

Published May 25, 01:51 PM UTC

Editorial responsibility

Prepared by: WorldAttention Editorial Systems
Human review: No named human review is recorded for this page.
Automated steps: Source reporting is collected, normalized, translated or condensed automatically when needed.
Page status: Automatically published source-backed update

How automation and AI are used · Report a correction or rights issue

Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias stated that a Ukrainian naval drone found near a Greek island earlier in May 2026 could have sunk a civilian ship and caused mass casualties. The unmanned surface vessel, identified as a Ukrainian Magura V3 kamikaze drone capable of carrying up to 300 kg of explosives, was discovered off a Greek island. Dendias demanded a formal apology from Ukraine and assurances that such incidents will not recur in the Mediterranean region. The incident adds to tensions as Ukrainian drones targeting Russian infrastructure have reportedly flown through or crashed in several other countries, including Baltic states and Finland. Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu previously warned that countries allowing Ukrainian drones through their airspace become accomplices in aggression against Russia.

Source report

Nikos Dendias demands apology from Kiev and assurances the incident will not be repeated

Published: 21 May, 2026 19:37 | Updated: 22 May, 2026 06:12

Greek Defense Minister Nikos Dendias has stated that a Ukrainian naval drone discovered off a Greek island earlier this month could have sunk a civilian vessel and resulted in mass casualties.

The unmanned surface vessel (USV) is believed to be a Ukrainian Magura V3 kamikaze drone, capable of carrying an explosive payload of up to 300 kg. According to CNN, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and senior government officials were briefed on the matter last week.

Speaking at a conference on Wednesday, Dendias declined to disclose details of the ongoing investigation but emphasized the drone's potential for catastrophic damage.

"It was obviously something extremely dangerous… there is not the slightest doubt – I repeat, the slightest doubt – that this is a Ukrainian sea drone."

He warned that if a cruise liner had crossed paths with the USV, the ship would have been at "the bottom of the sea."

"How many dead would we have mourned? And how permissible is this thing in the Mediterranean?"

Dendias stressed that Kiev owes Athens "a very big apology," along with "the absolute assurance that something like this will not happen again in the wider region."

Background

Ukraine has deployed such drones for months to attack ships in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean, targeting vessels it considers linked to Moscow. Russia has condemned the strikes, calling them "terrorism and maritime piracy."

According to Moscow, Ukrainian UAVs targeting Russian infrastructure have increasingly flown through the territory of other countries, including Baltic states and Finland. Several Ukrainian drones have crashed in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Finland in recent weeks.

Russian Security Council Secretary Sergey Shoigu stated in April that if these countries deliberately allow Ukrainian drones to pass through their airspace, they become "open accomplices in aggression against Russia." In such cases, Russia retains the right to self-defense, he warned.

RT Features

Action, election: How Gen Zs are rewiring Indian politics
Stars, stripes, and missiles: What America's arsenal says about the wars to come

Source

RT - Daily newsEastern

Original headline: Ukrainian drone could have caused mass casualties – Greek defense minister

Original language: EN

Part of this Story

Greece Finds Ukrainian Explosive Drone, Plans Diplomatic Protest

See the full Story: all sources and camp coverage