After an audit of its military warehouses, Bulgaria discovered surplus stocks of ammunition and is ready to offer them to Ukraine, but wants monetary compensation for this.
This was announced by the Acting Minister of Defense of Bulgaria, Atanas Zapryanov, BNR reports.
He made it clear that the shells can be transferred to Ukraine only if the allies compensate them — according to an agreement similar to the one that was in effect during the transfer of the previous two announced packages of military aid. However, Zapryanov did not specify what kind of ammunition it was — for artillery or other weapons. He described them as munitions of "certain types." He also did not announce their number.
Zapryanov noted that the Bulgarian government has yet to make a decision, and then coordinate actions and logistics with allies and Ukraine.
- Approving the transfer of ammunition is a lengthy procedure. First, permission must be given by the Bulgarian government. Then there will be consultations with NATO allies and Ukrainian colleagues, and only after that — a decision.
- Bulgaria has been helping Ukraine with arms since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion, but mostly in private. In October 2022, the publication EurActiv wrote that Bulgaria is one of the largest non-public suppliers of weapons to Ukraine. In January 2023, the German publication Die Welt wrote that at the beginning of the war , Bulgaria secretly provided Ukraine with a third of ammunition and 40% of diesel fuel. At the same time, due to internal political disagreements, the shells were transferred secretly. Bulgaria officially handed Ukraine two packages of military aid.