The drone that exploded in the area of our land border with Romania put the institutions on their toes and provoked a wave of political comments.
The incident, which is being investigated urgently, led to the convening of the Security Council and the redeployment of additional military forces.
The facts surrounding the incident near the "Kardam" border checkpoint
The drone entered Bulgarian airspace in 08:10 on August 8, 2026 across the border with Romania. The device self-detonated in a sunflower field about 50-60 meters inland and about 100-120 meters west of the former border crossing. According to the regional governor of Dobrich Ruslan Tomov, the device was black in color.
The crash site is about 1 kilometer from a strategic site – the compressor station “Kardam 1 and 2“ of “Bulgartransgaz“. The Dobrich Regional Administration confirmed that no people were injured, nor was there any material damage to the buildings or the gas corridor. The area was immediately cordoned off by the Ministry of Interior, and teams for countering bomb terrorism began procedural and investigative actions.
According to an official statement from the Ministry of Defense, the initial analysis indicates that it is most likely a a decoy drone of the “Maya“ type, which is widely used by the Ukrainian armed forces. The military department specified that the device could carry up to 5 kg of explosives, but the incident is not considered a deliberate action against Bulgaria.
Why was the drone not detected by radar?
The case raised serious questions about our national air defense. Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced that the aircraft was not detected by either Bulgarian or Romanian radar systems. The reason is its small size and extremely low flight altitude, which limits radio coverage. Romania's radars also did not register its presence in its airspace.
The Chief of Defense, Admiral Emil Eftimov, explained that the drone was probably diverted by electronic warfare systems, which changed its trajectory and directed it beyond the range of tracking systems. He added that it is extremely difficult to react against such objects in peacetime over civilian areas.
Political reactions in Bulgaria
The incident caused immediate and divergent positions from the political formations in the country:
- GERD: They insist on the fastest and most complete investigation. The party emphasized that Bulgarian citizens should know whether this was a random incident or a deliberate act against a NATO member state, and called for the topic not to be used for party propaganda.
- "We continue the change" and "Democratic Bulgaria": Expressed serious concern about the proximity of the explosion to the Vertical Gas Corridor. Ivaylo Mirchev (DB) and Radoslav Ribarski (PP) stated that the case should be investigated as a potential attack on critical infrastructure, with Mirchev adding that if there was a Russian connection, this would be a clear attempt at intimidation.
- "Vazrazhdane": Leader Kostadin Kostadinov and representatives of the party sharply criticized the government. According to them, the incident is a direct consequence of the country's foreign policy, which, in their words, drags us into foreign conflicts.
International dimension and diplomatic response
The case quickly acquired an international character. Due to the data that the exploded machine was a Ukrainian decoy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) called the ambassador of Ukraine to our country Olesya Ilashchuk to a meeting.
In turn Ukraine officially assured that it did not intentionally direct a drone against Bulgaria and undertook to clarify the full circumstances surrounding the trajectory of the drone. Meanwhile, the Romanian Ministry of Defense said it was continuously monitoring the situation at its borders in real time, although its systems did not detect the specific flight.
Measures taken and consequences
Bulgaria has already taken urgent action to strengthen security at its borders:
- Air Defense and Aviation Deployment: Since the end of July 2026, due to frequent drone incidents “Shaheed“ in Romania, the Bulgarian Ministry of Defense has strengthened radar coverage along the northern border with anti-aircraft missile systems, Su-25 aircraft and “Kugyr“ helicopters.
- Repositioning of Border Police forces: Prime Minister Rumen Radev announced that after the incident near Kardam, specialized forces and technical means to combat drones are being redirected from the Turkish to the Romanian border.
- Intensified monitoring of critical infrastructure: Additional surveillance measures have been ordered around compressor stations and energy facilities in the country.
- Consultations in NATO: It is planned that the incident and the coordination of airspace security will be discussed in detail with the partners from the North Atlantic Alliance in the near future.