The conflict in Bulgaria's territorial waters and economic zone must be resolved by every means, mainly diplomacy, defence minister Dimitar Stoyanov told BNT. He has already spoken to the defence ministers of Romania and Turkey, and the three will meet soon to agree joint action.
Four ships were hit within a week in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, and two of them sank, prime minister Rumen Radev told parliament on Wednesday. The drone attacks took place on 6 and 13 October.
More on this story: Radev: Bulgaria acted fast after attacks on ships in the Black Sea
Aircraft from a NATO partner will soon be in Bulgaria, Stoyanov said, and more funding is expected. Bulgarian jets on duty will take off as soon as there is reliable information that airspace has been violated. Romania's airspace was violated the day before the interview.
The opposition is pressing for NATO's Article 4. Under it, members consult each other when one of them believes its territorial integrity, political independence or security is under threat. The minister said consultations are taking place in the alliance, but not in that form. Bulgaria's letter to NATO headquarters asking to join the anti-drone programme is expected by the end of October.
The European Council should share its information if it has up-to-date evidence that the drones that hit ships in the Black Sea came from Russia, Stoyanov said. He trusts the Bulgarian investigation into the ship Chelsea-3 and is waiting for its results.
The German government needed 27-28 days to prove that the drone at Leipzig airport was Russian, the minister said. He said technical checks took time, while opposition leaders in Bulgaria wanted the Russian origin announced before that. The Russian ambassador will probably receive an official note if the origin turns out to be Russian.
Bulgaria needs fighter jets, surface-to-air missile systems, anti-drone systems and kinetic systems to fight drones, and the ministry is working on this, he said.
Stoyanov has signed a contract for 3D radars. The first will arrive in 2028. The minister said such a contract could have been signed by the end of 2023, when the caretaker cabinet left office and handed over a ready project, but the governments that followed did not sign it. The country cannot re-arm its army in five months, he added, and said: "We are guarding the Black Sea coast with what the political elite left us."
Stoyanov said conscription will not return in the next 5-10 years. There will also be no mobilisation and no Bulgarian troops abroad. The ministry has calculated what conscription would cost: "There is certainly such a calculation, and I can tell you we cannot afford it," the minister said.
Instead, the government plans changes to the Armed Forces Reserve Act, with a round table on them in December. The alternatives are the Voluntary Reserve and training courses that give an advantage to people applying to join the Bulgarian army.
The ministry has set aside 2.33% of GDP for defence. Stoyanov would like military pay to rise by 5% from 1 January next year, but he said the final version of the budget should be awaited first.
The antennas for Starlink communications that were set on fire are private sites that meet certain requirements, and all steps in the case have been taken, the minister said. A result is expected on Tuesday or Wednesday.