European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s plane was hit with GPS jamming on Sunday in what authorities suspect was a Russian attack, the Daily Caller News Foundation confirmed with officials.
The plane landed safely at Plovdiv Airport in Bulgaria, but pilots were forced to land using paper maps, a source familiar with the situation told CNN. The incident occurred as von der Leyen toured eastern EU “frontline states” to rally support for Ukraine in its war with Russia.
“We can confirm there was GPS jamming but the plane landed safe,” European Commission spokesperson Arianna Podestà told the DCNF. “We have received information from Bulgarian authorities that they suspect this blatant interference was carried out by Russia. We are well aware that threats and intimidation are a regular component of Russia’s hostile actions.
Von der Leyen’s visit to Bulgaria was part of a tour of seven frontline states, including Latvia, Finland, Estonia, Poland, Lithuania, and Romania, aimed at reinforcing the EU’s support for member states bordering Russia. On Sunday, von der Leyen visited an arms producer alongside Bulgarian Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov, according to Politico.
“This incident underlines the urgency of the [Commission] President’s current trip to frontline Member States, where she has seen firsthand the every day threats from Russia and its proxies,” Podestà said. “This will further reinforce our unshakable commitment to ramp up our defense capabilities and support for Ukraine.”
The suspected Russian GPS attacks follow a series of airstrikes into Kyiv last Thursday that struck buildings housing EU and British delegations.
Ukraine has continued to insist that any peace deal with Russia include security guarantees from the West, while Russian President Vladimir Putin has signaled willingness to stop the fighting if Moscow gains control of the predominantly Russian-speaking Donbas region.
In an exclusive interview with the Daily Caller on Friday, President Donald Trump said a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appears unlikely. Trump, who met with Putin in Alaska in August to discuss peace talks, added that American jets may be needed to help Europe end the war, though he ruled out deploying U.S. ground troops.
“A tri would happen. A bi, I don’t know about, but a tri will happen. But, you know, sometimes people aren’t ready for it,” Trump said. “Sometimes they have to fight for a little bit before you can get them to stop. But this has been going on for a long time. A lot of people are dead.”
The Russian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to the DCNF’s request for comment.
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