Serbia’s Military Security Agency (VBA) director Đuro Jovanić said Sunday that Ukraine did not organize the sabotage attempt near the Balkan Stream gas pipeline in northern Serbia, while separately disclosing that his agency had warned Belgrade “for months” of the threat and met with “skepticism, disapproval, disagreement” from political leadership.
❗️Serbia has refuted Hungary’s accusations regarding the “Ukrainian trace” in the attempted sabotage of the gas pipeline to Hungary.
The head of Serbia’s Military Security Agency, Đuro Jovanić, stated that this is disinformation. The explosive found at the scene was manufactured… pic.twitter.com/AdDGG5CeiY
— 🪖MilitaryNewsUA🇺🇦 (@front_ukrainian) April 6, 2026
Serbian authorities found two backpacks containing roughly 4 kilograms of plastic explosive, detonator caps, detonating cord, and assembly tools near the village of Velebit in Vojvodina province on April 5. The Balkan Stream pipeline, an extension of Russia’s TurkStream system, moves Russian natural gas through Serbia into Hungary.
“It is not true that the Ukrainians tried to organize this sabotage,” Jovanić said. He added that forensic markings on the recovered explosives “unmistakably” identified the manufacturer as American, while cautioning that the manufacturer and the party responsible for ordering or carrying out the operation were not necessarily the same.
A suspect described as a person from a migrant group with military training would be detained, he said.
That the warnings were internally dismissed for months adds a dimension largely absent from other reporting.
Former Hungarian counterintelligence officer Peter Buda told The Guardian on Monday that “plans for this false-flag attack had been circulating since February” and were widely known among those tracking the issue.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stopped short of formally accusing Kyiv but said Ukraine had “been working for years to cut Europe off from Russian energy” and described the pipeline as Hungary’s “lifeline.”
⚠️ Sabotage attempt ⚠️
We have placed the Hungarian section of the TurkStream gas pipeline under reinforced military monitoring and protection. pic.twitter.com/VjnpnGiWGE
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) April 5, 2026
❗️ Sabotage attempt. An attempt was made to blow up the gas pipeline supplying Hungary. We are prepared. We will ensure Hungary’s energy security. pic.twitter.com/yqY45ZQEbv
— Orbán Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) April 6, 2026
On Monday he traveled to the Hungarian-Serbian border, where Hungarian defense forces placed the pipeline under military protection.
For weeks, we’ve been receiving warnings from multiple sources that, after previous failed false-flag operations and a drop in Fidesz’s support, Viktor Orbán – allegedly with Serbian and Russian assistance – may be planning to cross another line.
Many people have suggested that…— Magyar Péter (Ne féljetek) (@magyarpeterMP) April 5, 2026
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry categorically denied any involvement. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Monday that it was “highly likely” Kyiv was behind the plot, without providing evidence.
We categorically reject attempts to falsely link Ukraine to the incident with explosives found near the Turkstream pipeline in Serbia. Ukraine has nothing to do with this. Most probably, a Russian false-flag operation as part of Moscow’s heavy interference in Hungarian elections.
— Heorhii Tykhyi (@SpoxUkraineMFA) April 5, 2026
Srdjan Cvijić of the Belgrade Center for Security Policy told RFE/RL‘s Balkan Service that the incident “reflected all the core narratives of Russian disinformation being promoted in this part of Europe.”
US Vice President JD Vance is scheduled to arrive in Budapest today for meetings with Orbán and a Fidesz rally appearance.
