President Rumen Radev Firmly Opposes Sending Bulgarian Troops to Ukraine

President Rumen Radev strongly opposed sending Bulgaria troops to Ukraine.

"If you remember, the big question I raised at the beginning of the war in Ukraine was to prevent Bulgaria's involvement in it. Today, in the context of the crumbling global security architecture, this question is even more relevant. As the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, I am firmly against Bulgaria sending troops to Ukraine in any form. I expect the government and the National Assembly to make a clear and unequivocal statement that Bulgaria will not send troops."

Bulgaria has received questions regarding potential participation in the process of ensuring security in Ukraine. This was confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to BNT.

US and NATO ask European countries: Are we ready to send peacekeepers to Ukraine?

The U.S. Embassy in Bulgaria and our permanent delegation to NATO have sent six questions to Bulgaria. The document asks which countries might contribute to providing guarantees to Kyiv, whether they would be willing to deploy troops in Ukraine as part of a peaceful solution, and what the size of any potential European-led forces should be.

The decision to send Bulgarian troops to Ukraine is an exclusive prerogative of the Parliament, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. Bulgaria's position is categorical – Ukraine should receive clear and reliable security guarantees and should participate in negotiations about its future.

The same letter with six questions has been sent by the U.S. administration to all the capitals of Europe, where the debate on the participation of European soldiers as peacekeepers in Ukraine has dominated since yesterday. At an extraordinary summit in Paris convened by President Emmanuel Macron, European countries united in their support for Ukraine but not around the idea of sending European troops.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer was the first to not rule out sending soldiers to Ukrainian territory, "if necessary". Similar ideas were raised last year by French President Emmanuel Macron. Sweden also did not rule out participating in such a mission if a ceasefire were reached in Ukraine.

On the other hand, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary are firmly against it. The signals from Germany are conflicting just days before the early parliamentary elections – Chancellor Olaf Scholz's government rejected the idea, but the Christian Democratic Union, expected to win the election on Sunday, supports sending troops.

Among the hesitant countries are Denmark, Spain, and the Netherlands.

The meeting, and particularly its format, was criticised by countries such as the Czech Republic and Romania, as they did not have representatives, even though they are located close to Ukraine.

After the summit in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and briefed him on the course of the discussions. Macron also had a conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Parallel to the meetings of European leaders and telephone diplomacy, the U.S. envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, met today, February 18, with the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, after having talks with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte yesterday. Kellogg also has planned discussions with Polish President Andrzej Duda and will later visit Kyiv for talks with President Volodymyr Zelensky.