Four Belgian, three Dutch Tripartite mine hunters to be transferred to Bulgaria free of charge
Belgium will transfer its four Tripartite Mine Hunters (CMTs) to Bulgaria free of charge to provide operational support to the Bulgarian Navy and, to a limited extent, to Ukraine, Belgian’s Defence Ministry said in a media statement.
The Council of Ministers approved the Ministry of Defence’s proposal on September 12.
Bulgaria will cover the costs of restoring the vessels to full operational readiness.
The Council of Ministers also noted the Netherlands’ decision to join this project, with the Netherlands transferring three mine hunters to Bulgaria.
Given the importance of a strong mine countermeasures capability in the Black Sea region and Bulgaria’s keen interest in taking over the Belgian and Dutch CMTs, the two countries agreed to the transfer of four Belgian and three Dutch CMTs, including spare parts and the tactical simulator, the Belgian Defence Ministry said.
Further administrative and technical discussions between the three parties concerned will now begin with a view to concluding a trilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
The transfer is, however, subject to certain conditions, the statement said.
Bulgaria will assume responsibility for financing the commissioning and maintenance. This should be achieved, as much as possible, through primarily Belgian economic operators and activities. Bulgaria may use existing defence agreements or new public procurement contracts to achieve this.
Bulgaria will also provide Ukraine with the necessary support services in the form of training and crew education for ships of this class. In June 2025, Belgium and the Netherlands donated two mine-hunting vessels to Ukraine, with a third ship to follow at the end of this year.
The phased retirement of the current CMTs will depend on the delivery and commissioning of the future replacement Mine Countermeasure (rMCM) capability.
The Belgian and Dutch defence forces are expected to receive their first ship as part of the program later this year.
This program provides for six vessels for each country, equipped with MCM toolkits capable of remotely detecting and destroying sea mines.
Initially, the vessel equipped with the MCM toolkit will be capable of performing the same tasks as the current capability. At the same time, continuous systems development is required to gradually improve capabilities and adapt them to future operational requirements.
The future RMCM capability will be built in France as part of a joint Belgian-Dutch modernization program to replace the older Tripartite minehunters.
The new fleet will play a central role in ensuring security at sea, both in European waters and in international operations.
The combination of cutting-edge technology and increased operational flexibility makes these vessels a vital link in the protection of waterways, infrastructure, and maritime interests, the statement said.
(Photo: Mark Harkin, via Wikimedia Commons)
