The President of Bulgaria Rumen Radev called the countryʼs possible accession to the European Union project to provide Ukraine with a million ammunitions a "mistake".
He stated this on June 20 during a conversation with journalists.
"While I was representing Bulgaria in the Council of the EU, I defended this position — it is clear that Bulgaria is not part of the ʼOne million projectilesʼ initiative for Ukraine. If the government takes such a decision, in my opinion, it will be a mistake. You see the conflict escalating, carrying huge risks, draining our economies and social systems. Both in Bulgaria and in Brussels, I argued that our country should not intervene by supplying weapons in the war in Ukraine," the president noted.
The topic of the transfer of shells to Ukraine has long been the cause of an absentee dispute between President Radev and Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov, who believes that Bulgaria should fulfill its obligations. In early June, Bulgarian Defense Minister Todor Taharyov announced that he supports military aid to Ukraine amid its counteroffensive.
Bulgaria is a parliamentary republic, meaning that the parliament forms the government and usually elects the president. The president performs a symbolic legal role. 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.
- On December 9, 2022, Bulgaria approved the first package of military aid to Ukraine. The list of weapons was classified, but government officials said Sofia would send mostly light weapons and ammunition.
- On May 4, 2022, the Bulgarian parliament allowed the repair of Ukrainian military equipment at defense enterprises, but refused to provide Ukraine with weapons and ammunition.
- On March 20, 2023, 18 countries signed the project of the European Defense Agency on the joint purchase of one million ammunitions to help Ukraine — here is the list of countries.