It is not only in Bulgaria that the origin of the drone that invaded the country is yet to be established - in Germany they are continuing to investigate the appearance of the drone at the Leipzig/Halle airport. Many have already linked the incident to Russia.
Bulgarian authorities are investigating the origin of the drone that exploded near a cross-border gas pipeline in the country. For several days, their German colleagues have also been trying to establish how and from where a drone carrying explosives ended up at the Leipzig/Halle airport. It was found near Ukrainian Antonov aircraft, and the incident has raised serious debate about Germany's security and protection from provocations with drones.
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrint spoke of a "hybrid scenario" in which "foreign forces" are involved, and many are already linking the incident to Russia, which denies involvement. What is known?
"Russian services may be involved"
The federal prosecutor's office is investigating suspicions of an attempt to cause an explosion and dangerous disruption of air traffic, the prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe announced. The drone was found at Leipzig/Halle airport near Ukrainian transport aircraft. Suspicions are directed at Russia, which has long threatened countries that supply weapons to Ukraine. As ARD reminds us, the country's former president Dmitry Medvedev recently identified German and European arms companies as "potential targets of the Russian military".
"There are indications that Russian intelligence services may be involved", military expert Matthias Uhl commented in an interview with the DPA agency. The Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) is believed to be behind a number of operations in Western countries. "It was either Russia, or someone wanted to make it look like Russia", says Sebastian Fiedler, a member of parliament from the German Social Democratic Party. If the suspicions that Moscow was responsible are confirmed, it would be "an act of war".
Other politicians in Germany also expressed the opinion that the provocation is very reminiscent of the manner of the Russian services. The fact that a drone with explosives was found near Ukrainian planes also points to such a scenario.
In 2024, a shipment caught fire again at the DHL logistics center in Leipzig. And then suspicions arose that it was a Russian action, and five people are currently accused of terrorist acts in Lithuania. According to the indictment, they sent packages with homemade explosives and are linked to the GRU. The accused are citizens of Russia, Ukraine and Lithuania.
Russia denies and blames the Ukrainians
Russian President Vladimir Putin denies that his country carries out such attacks in NATO countries. Last year, he said that the accusations against Russia are used to inflame tensions and justify increasing military spending. Medvedev, on the other hand, speaks of provocations by Ukrainians who aimed to involve other European countries in the war that his country is waging against Ukraine. However, he admitted that it could be the activities of pro-Russian activists from European countries with the aim of destabilizing life in the EU, ARD notes.
Last year, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz indicated that Russia was probably behind the drone operations, and that Putin wanted to "test" Germany in this way.
Matthias Uhl does not rule out the possibility that it was a "false flag" operation. "This thesis is supported by the fact that so far the official German authorities have explicitly refrained from accusing Moscow," he commented to DPA.
Russian drones have repeatedly entered NATO skies
A year ago, a National Security Council was established in Germany to work on the topic. Its goal is to develop security concepts and coordinate Germany's defense strategy. Politicians in Germany are demanding that the risk of provocations and drone attacks be raised with NATO partners.
After the airspace of Estonia and Poland was violated last year, Tallinn and Warsaw activated Article Four of the North Atlantic Treaty and convened consultations.
In September 2025, three Russian fighter jets violated Estonian airspace, and shortly before that, Poland shot down Russian drones that entered its territory for the first time. Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine in 2022, this has happened more than once. Russian drones have also entered the territory of Romania, and in May this year, one of them crashed into a residential building in the city of Galati. In 2026 alone, at least 19 drones violated Romanian airspace, and in July the country's air force shot down three Russian drones as part of a "combined multinational operation", as reported by NATO.