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An as yet unidentified drone exploded in Bulgaria on Saturday, close to the border with Romania, officials said.
According to Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev, the drone entered Bulgarian airspace from Romania before exploding 1,000 metres from a compressor station of the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline, near the former Kardam border checkpoint between the two countries.
“Noise made by the drone was detected by Romanian border police, and a loud explosion was subsequently heard by the ‘General Toshevo’ border police patrol,” he told a press conference.
He added that the “location of the drone explosion was immediately identified” and confirmed that there were no casualties or damage to buildings or infrastructure.
The prime minister said both Bulgarian and Romanian authorities had failed to pick up the drone as it made its way through their respective airspace. Increased surveillance operations will now be put in place in the region, he added.
An investigation into the incident has been launched to determine the type of drone involved.
According to opposition lawmaker Ivaylo Mirchev, Kardam is one of the key locations on the Vertical Gas Corridor, a strategic route for transporting liquefied natural gas from Greece across Southeastern and Central Europe. The corridor links Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova, and Ukraine.
The incursion comes after Romanian forces shot down three drones in its airspace over the course of just three days in late July. Romanian officials have said that at least one of those drones has been determined to be of the Shahed-type used by Russian forces.
Both Romania and Bulgaria sit on NATO’s eastern flank, bordering the Black Sea, and face increased security challenges relating to Russia’s war in Ukraine, which began after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022.
Romania has seen a surge in drone-related incidents and incursions into its airspace in recent months, heightening tensions in the region and prompting an outpouring of solidarity from EU officials.
In May, a Russian drone carrying explosives crashed into an apartment block in Galați, sparking a fire on the roof and injuring two people.
The following month, a Ukrainian naval drone also exploded in the Romanian port of Constanta. The Ukrainian military said it had veered off course as a result of Russian electronic warfare interference.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has labelled such incidents “a direct consequence of Russia’s war against Ukraine.”