Defense Minister: Bulgaria Takes No Military Commitments Under Ukraine Security Deal

Acting Defense Minister Atanas Zapryanov has stated that Bulgaria is not taking on any military obligations under the ten-year security cooperation agreement with Ukraine, addressing concerns raised in public and political debate. He made the comments in an interview with Bulgarian National Radio regarding the agreement signed on March 30 between Acting Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Zapryanov rejected claims suggesting that the agreement implies Bulgarian involvement in the war, describing such interpretations as incorrect. He emphasized that the document does not introduce new defense commitments and is instead built on existing frameworks already agreed between the two countries.

According to him, the arrangement is grounded in Bulgaria’s participation in NATO and EU decisions and aligns with previously adopted national resolutions on military-technical assistance to Ukraine since 2022. He stressed that the government is continuing to implement those earlier parliamentary decisions rather than introducing new obligations through the agreement itself.

The minister added that cooperation between Bulgaria and Ukraine already exists in established areas such as military education, highlighting long-standing institutional ties, including collaboration between the Naval academies in Varna and Ukraine. He described these links as well-developed and ongoing.

At the same time, Zapryanov pointed to new areas of potential cooperation, particularly in cybersecurity. He noted that Ukraine has extensive experience in this field due to frequent cyberattacks linked to the ongoing war, and that this expertise could be valuable for Bulgaria.

He also highlighted discussions with his Ukrainian counterpart regarding the exchange of experience in countering drones and the operational use of drone technologies. According to him, this is an area where cooperation will be further expanded and deepened.