Bulgarian authorities have stepped up security along the country’s border with Romania after a drone carrying explosives crashed and detonated near the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline, amid growing concerns over unidentified unmanned aircraft entering European airspace.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said Saturday that the drone exploded near the Kardam border crossing with Romania, approximately one kilometer from a compressor station serving the Trans-Balkan pipeline, which connects Türkiye with Ukraine.
No casualties were reported.
Radev said the aircraft was not a small recreational drone but a larger unmanned vehicle carrying what appeared to be a significant quantity of explosives. It crashed in a sunflower field near the border crossing before exploding.
Bulgaria’s Defence Ministry said an initial assessment suggested the aircraft was most likely a Maya decoy drone, a type widely used by Ukrainian forces. Officials said there was currently no evidence indicating the drone had deliberately targeted Bulgarian territory.
Ukraine said it was cooperating with Bulgarian authorities to determine what happened.
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Georgiy Tykhyi said Kyiv was in close contact with Sofia and insisted that Ukrainian forces had not intentionally directed any military assets toward Bulgaria.
Bulgaria’s Foreign Ministry has summoned the Ukrainian ambassador over the incident, with a meeting expected on Monday.
Radev said neither Bulgarian nor neighboring Romanian authorities detected the drone before it exploded, raising concerns about the ability of regional air-defense systems to identify unmanned aircraft crossing borders.
In response, Bulgarian authorities have increased aerial surveillance and announced plans to redeploy military personnel to border areas to strengthen drone detection and counter-drone capabilities.
The incident comes amid heightened security concerns across Europe following a series of unidentified drone sightings and incursions as Russia’s war in Ukraine continues.
The proximity of the explosion to the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline has also raised concerns about the vulnerability of critical energy infrastructure as European governments confront growing security risks linked to the conflict.
