Suspected Russian interference forced European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's plane to land in Bulgaria using paper maps, the Financial Times reported on Sept. 1, citing three undisclosed officials.

Suspected Russian GPS interference forced European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s plane to land in Bulgaria using paper maps, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Sept. 1, citing three undisclosed officials.

Von der Leyen was flying to Plovdiv on Aug. 31 as part of her tour of the EU’s eastern member states, discussing Europe’s security with leaders of countries in Russia’s vicinity.

During an approach to a Bulgarian airport, the aircraft lost navigational aids and, after circling for about an hour, the pilot decided to land the plane using analog maps, the FT reported.

The case is being treated as a Russian interference operation, sources told the outlet. Bulgarian air traffic authorities confirmed the incident for the FT, while Brussels and Moscow have yet to comment.

The Kyiv Independent could not verify the claims.

Glad to hear that you’re planning on using SAFE to build new plants for shells and gunpowder.This is exactly what it’s for.To increase our production capacities.Ramp up deliveries to Ukraine.And create good jobs locally ↓ https://t.co/J9q17hsD83

— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) August 31, 2025

Accompanied by Bulgarian Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov, von der Leyen visited the country’s largest state-owned arms producer, VMZ Sopot, praising Bulgaria’s booming defense industry.

“Bulgaria is actively contributing to both Ukraine and the European Union’s defense security,” von der Leyen said on Aug. 31, adding that the Balkan country supplied one-third of Ukraine’s arms at the onset of the full-scale Russian invasion.

Western officials have repeatedly warned about Russia carrying out GPS jamming and radar interference in eastern NATO and EU countries, a move seen as part of Moscow’s hybrid operations.

Suspected Russian sabotage operations have surged in Europe since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, a wave that seemed to have reached its peak in 2024. The New York Times reported in August that the cases dropped this year, possibly due to heightened security measures and renewed peace efforts in Ukraine.

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