GPS jamming on von der Leyen's plane the latest sign of Russia's hybrid warfare

NATO said Tuesday it was working to prevent Russian GPS jamming after a plane carrying European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen lost satellite navigation over Bulgaria.

LONDON — The Kremlin’s campaign of hybrid warfare has jammed its way to the top of Europe’s agenda.

A plane carrying the continent’s top official lost its GPS navigation while midair over the continent’s wary east over the weekend and was forced to land using paper maps. This was the most high-profile case yet, officials and experts said Tuesday, of a Russian strategy that is not only disrupting travel but imperiling lives.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s flight landed safely in Bulgaria, just a short distance from Russian territory. But it has given a jolt to European fears over Moscow’s suspected interference with Western signals.

Once a background nuisance, the issue has surged into a mounting security concern — escalating in step with Moscow’s war in Ukraine — and has the continent scrambling to adapt.

Bulgarian authorities later confirmed that the satellite signal guiding the plane’s navigation system had been neutralized. The European Commission said Bulgaria suspected “blatant interference by Russia.”