An alleged Russian cyberattack has indirectly targeted the plane carrying European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. As reported by the Financial Times, the GPS navigation systems at a Bulgarian airport were hacked, which the Berlaymont leader's plane was in contact with, disabling them. The plane was forced to land using paper maps. Bulgarian authorities are investigating the incident.

If the reconstruction, and above all responsibility for the attack, were confirmed, it would be the second important Russian warning to the leaders of the European Union. While Brussels is discussing sending troops or trainers to Ukrainian territory, Moscow first bombed EU buildings in Kiev and then on Sunday directly struck the vehicle carrying the highest European official.

"The entire airport's GPS system went down," one of the officials interviewed by the British financial newspaper said. After flying over the airport for an hour, the pilot decided to land manually using analog maps:"It was undeniable interference," the sources later established without any doubt. According to them, the technique is the now well-known GPS jamming and spoofing technique, which distorts or prevents access to the satellite navigation system. This technique is traditionally used by military and intelligence services to defend sensitive sites, but is increasingly frequent in EU countries bordering the Federation. In recent years, the FT explains, incidents related to GPS signal jamming have increased significantly in the Baltic Sea and in Eastern European countries, affecting aircraft, vessels, and civilians who use the service for daily navigation.