Bulgaria seeks NATO aircraft and anti-drone defences after Black Sea ship strikes

Bulgaria has asked NATO for combat aircraft, patrol planes, missile systems and equipment to counter drones after strikes on commercial shipping in the Black Sea, Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said on Friday. The request is for reinforcements, not an announcement that NATO has agreed to send them. [2] [4]

Stoyanov said Bulgaria had sent letters to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and the alliance’s top military commander. He said the request could also mean stationing additional allied forces on Bulgarian territory, but that no decision had been confirmed on what support Bulgaria would receive. [2]

The request follows drone strikes on ships off Bulgaria and neighbouring Romania. Reuters reported that a commercial vessel sank off the Bulgarian coast and that Sofia summoned Russia’s ambassador. Prime Minister Rumen Radev has said he considers Russia the likely culprit, while acknowledging that Bulgaria cannot prove it. Bulgaria has not formally assigned blame for the attacks. [4] [5] [1]

Rutte met Radev and Romanian President Nicușor Dan in Brussels on Thursday, according to a NATO photo record. A NATO official told Reuters that ambassadors from the alliance’s 32 member states would discuss Bulgaria’s request further the following week. [3] [4]