Defence Minister: Bulgaria does not plan to send military personnel to an exercise in Greenland

Bulgaria does not plan to have Bulgarian military personnel participate in an exercise in Greenland, Defence Minister Atanas Zapryanov told the parliamentary committee on defence on January 21, according to a report by Bulgarian National Radio.

US president Trump’s stated intention for the US to “acquire” Greenland – which is Danish territory – has been followed by some European countries deploying small numbers of military personnel on the continent, while, as Deutsche Welle reported on January 21, French president Emmanuel Macron has called on Nato allies to conduct a military exercise in Greenland.

Zapryanov was responding to a question from MP Ivelin Parvanov from the minority pro-Russian Vuzrazhdane parliamentary group, who asked whether there was a possibility that Bulgarian military personnel would participate in the Nato forces’ exercise in Greenland.

As of the afternoon of January 21, there has been no public statement from Bulgaria’s outgoing government or the country’s Foreign Ministry about Trump’s demands regarding Greenland.

On January 20, the Yes Bulgaria party – part of opposition coalition We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria – said that in the light of the upcoming summit of European leaders regarding Greenland, Bulgaria must take a clear position to guarantee the territorial integrity of each member state.

Decisions about the future of each sovereign state must be made by its people, not imposed by an external force, Yes Bulgaria said.

The party linked the silence of the Bulgarian government to the “hope of removing political figures from the Magnitsky corruption sanctions list”, which Yes Bulgaria said was regrettable and undignified.

Delyan Peevski, leader of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms – New Beginning party and who is on the Magnitsky list, has been a key figure in the outgoing government, without formally holding seats in it. Peevski long has been campaigning to be removed from the US sanctions list.

Yes Bulgaria said: “We call on the government to take a responsible position at the upcoming January 22 meeting of the members of the European Council by expressing its solidarity with Denmark and Greenland and showing that Bulgaria can bear responsibility for European security and unity”.

“Only on this basis can we count on the same solidarity towards ourselves,” the party said.