Key points
- Incidents rising across eastern EU airspace
- EU plans sanctions and countermeasures
- Ukraine accuses Russia of political assassination
ISLAMABAD: Russia is believed to have jammed the satellite signal of a plane carrying European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen while flying over Bulgaria, reportedly forcing it to circle Plovdiv airport for an hour.
According to The Guardian, Von der Leyen was on a visit to seven eastern EU states when her charter aircraft lost GPS navigation, delaying her arrival. European Commission deputy spokesperson Arianna Podestà confirmed the disruption, stating: “We have received information from the Bulgarian authorities that they suspect this was due to blatant interference by Russia… the threats and intimidations that are a regular component of Russia’s hostile behaviour.”
Though major airports have alternative systems like radio navigation, which remain dependable, GPS jamming has become frequent near Russian airspace. It is unclear whether von der Leyen was deliberately targeted. When asked, Podestà responded: “The question is best asked to the Russians.”
Hybrid threats
The incident, first reported by the Financial Times, coincided with von der Leyen’s tour to reassure eastern EU members. While in Vilnius, she didn’t mention the event but referred to “constant military and hybrid threats” facing Lithuania, citing recent drone incursions from Belarus. “As Lithuania is being tested, Europe as a whole is being tested,” she said.
Podestà added that such incidents “only reinforce[s] even further our unshakeable commitment to ramp up defence capabilities and our support for Ukraine.”
This is not the first such case. In March 2024, a UK defence secretary’s RAF flight lost GPS signals near Kaliningrad. It was unclear if he was the intended target.
Meeting EU leaders
GPS jamming and spoofing — where false navigation data is transmitted — have intensified since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with sharp increases in recent months, reports The Guardian.
In January 2025, Poland recorded 2,732 incidents, up from 1,908 in October 2023, and Lithuania noted 1,185, more than double March 2024’s figures. An internal EU document states these are “not random incidents but a systemic, deliberate action by Russia and Belarus.”
The Commission recently sanctioned several firms linked to GPS interference and is crafting aviation-specific and wider anti-jamming strategies.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian police accuse Russia of orchestrating the killing of ex-parliament speaker Andriy Parubiy in Lviv. A disguised gunman shot him eight times. “We know that this crime was not accidental. There is Russian involvement,” said Ukraine’s police chief.
