Bulgaria's Foreign Ministry summoned Ukraine's ambassador Olesia Ilashchuk over the August 8 drone incident. The meeting is set for Monday, August 10, as the ambassador is currently outside the country.
On the morning of August 8, a drone that entered Bulgaria from Romania exploded one kilometer from the compressor station of the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline, near a former checkpoint in the area of the village of Kardam. The blast was recorded by a border police patrol.
According to Bulgaria's Defense Ministry, a preliminary analysis of the debris indicates it was a 'Maya' decoy drone. The ministry noted that this type of drone is widely used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine, but that there is currently 'no reason to believe the incident was intentional.'
Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said Kyiv is in close contact with the Bulgarian side to clarify the circumstances. Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi stressed that Ukraine's defense forces 'did not deliberately direct any means toward Bulgaria.' He also noted that the root cause of all such incidents is Russia's war against Ukraine.
The Trans-Balkan gas pipeline transports liquefied natural gas from Greece to Southeast and Central Europe. It connects Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova, and Ukraine.
Following the incident, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev convened an emergency meeting of the country's Security Council. He acknowledged that the drone that fell on Bulgarian territory was not detected either in Romania or in Bulgaria, pointing to the countries' lack of modern and effective radar surveillance capabilities. Bulgaria plans to strengthen protection of strategic sites and is redeploying forces to counter low-flying targets. Bulgaria halted military aid to Ukraine in June; the prime minister explained this by saying the country favors diplomatic efforts to end the war.