Defence Minister: Bulgaria has asked Nato to strengthen capabilities in the Black Sea region
Bulgaria has requested aviation, anti-aircraft missile systems, anti-drone systems and patrol aviation from its Nato allies, Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said on October 16.
Stoyanov said that Bulgaria is awaiting a decision on what defence capabilities can be provided.
“We have asked for the entire possible spectrum,” he said.
Stoyanov said that Bulgaria has sent a request to the Nato Secretary General and the Allied Command to strengthen defence capabilities in the region. It has not yet been confirmed what support and how it will be provided.
“The capabilities of the allies are limited, and Romania, as well as the Baltic states, need additional capabilities,” Stoyanov said.
He said that the intensity of the strikes in the Black Sea is increasing with each passing day, and yesterday there were strikes in the territorial waters of Romania. This once again shows the need to modernise Bulgaria’s armed forces and improve defence capabilities, he said.
While until recently attention was mainly focused on the Baltic region, in the last week the focus has increasingly shifted to the Black Sea, Stoyanov said.
In the past few days, four merchant ships have been hit in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea, and two in Romania’s territorial waters.
Bulgaria has not yet named who was behind the attacks.
Although Prime Minister Roumen Radev has repeatedly admitted that it makes no sense for Ukraine to attack its own ships and that the strikes are in Russia’s interest, the government says that it is still seeking solid evidence that the attacks were carried out by Russia.
(Archive photo: Ministry of Defence)
