site.btaDeputy Defence Minister: Ukrainian Specialists Arrive Next Week to Talk About Repairs of Military Equipment

Next week, Ukrainian specialists will come to Bulgaria, with whom we will specifically negotiate what will be done here, what equipment will be repaired, said Deputy Minister of Defence Yordan Bozhilov on Bulgarian National Television, following Parliament’s decision to provide military-technical assistance to Ukraine.

The Ministry of Defence will do everything possible to implement this decision of the National Assembly, Bozhilov said.

He noted that ever since the socialist era, Bulgaria has been building the greatest capability to repair armoured vehicles in the Warsaw Pact through the system of military plants TEREM. There are seven factories in Bulgaria that specialize in various activities. TEREM – Targovishte repairs tanks and armoured vehicles. Currently, it is also modernizing the tanks of the Bulgarian Armed Forces, Bozhilov said.

Our country has both people and capacity for that, the question is to see what the Ukrainian colleagues will require, he added. Bozhilov also pointed out that Slovakia has already started repairing armoured vehicles. This is important for Ukraine because the war will be long, he predicted.

The Deputy Minister of Defence said that the decision taken by a large majority in Parliament to help Ukraine is a clear sign that we know who the aggressor is in this situation, who is the victim, and whom we must help. This is important because initially there were fluctuations in our society and we have had to dispel many delusions coming from hybrid threats and the incoming propaganda which makes us hesitate, Bozhilov commented.

He said that it is very important for Bulgaria to have aviation, the protection of our airspace requires this capability. Our aviation is not incapacitated, our task is to find a way to use the planes we have until the new F-16s arrive, Bozhilov said. We have been maintaining old Soviet equipment for 30 years, we should have started replacing it many years ago, he added. We are moving towards acquiring new equipment, we have a contract for the purchase of eight aircraft, and we will ask our allies for support in deploying technical means that we do not have, Bozhilov said.

In connection with the completion on May 31 of the participation of the Dutch Air Force in the joint implementation of the Air Policing mission with the Bulgarian Air Force to protect our airspace, Bozhilov said that talks are underway with the Netherlands to extend its stay here, but also with other countries that could support Bulgaria. He pointed out that in the coming days it will become clear how the support for the protection of our airspace will continue.

Bozhilov described as fake news the claims that the F-16 planes will not arrive and will be delivered to Ukraine, and the money paid by Bulgaria under the contract will be returned to us. Absolutely fake news, he said. The planes will arrive in early 2025, Bozhilov said.