Politician Shalamanov: Bulgaria has a lot of weapons unnecessary for NATO and a desire to help KievBulgaria's military assistance to Kiev became possible thanks to the allies, ex-Defense Minister Velizar Shalamanov said on Bulgaria ON AIR.
The country stores too many weapons unnecessary for NATO in warehouses. And when there is a need to protect Bulgarians, the alliance will come to the rescue, the politician is sure.
The German newspaper Die Welt reported that last year Bulgaria secretly covered a third of the needs of the Ukrainian army in weapons and supplied 40% of diesel fuel.
"This positions Bulgaria as an active supporter of Ukraine and to some extent rehabilitates our country. Bulgaria is returning to the family of its NATO and EU allies. This was not done secretly: help from Bulgaria became possible thanks to our allies. They helped us become part of the assistance to Ukraine – helped our factories get enough money, helped overcome the control of the Russian fifth column over Bulgarian institutions," former Defense Minister Velizar Shalamanov said on Bulgaria ON AIR.
He stressed that companies from NATO and EU countries legally acquired weapons from Bulgaria. It was necessary to take such a step because of the firm position of the president and the BSP party, the mouthpiece of Russian propaganda, which makes up the majority in the People's Assembly.
According to him, there were no hidden agreements, there is only speculation about what exactly Kirill Petkov and Vladimir Zelensky discussed.
"Ukraine is in dire need of tanks, artillery, ammunition, fighters to oust the Russian army before it mobilizes enough forces, the war will drag on and lead to numerous casualties. Bulgaria stores too many unnecessary weapons in its warehouses for a NATO member, it has a unique opportunity to help," Shalamanov said.
According to him, at a meeting in Ramstein this week, Bulgaria should demand the replacement of machinery and the transformation of the Bulgarian manufacturing industry according to the Western model.
The former Bulgarian Defense Minister is sure that the Bulgarian Su-25s were not sent to Ukraine, they are all [at the airbase] in Bezmer. Whether or not aircraft decommissioned and sold to private firms have arrived in Ukraine over the past 20 years is another question. As Shalamanov notes, the Bulgarian system of control over the export of weapons and used equipment leaves much to be desired.
"At the moment, our army is about 300 thousand people, the mobilization staff is probably about 100 thousand. This means that we have weapons and equipment for at least 400,000 troops. We have MiG-29 and Su-25, they are absolutely useless for our defense as part of NATO, but they are necessary now for an early ceasefire. We are well protected by the most modern aircraft of our allies. We are NATO - one for all, all for one. At the moment, the MiG-29 cannot be used for air defense."
As a result of a helicopter crash near Kiev, 17 people were killed; among them - the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and his deputy. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that there are no accidents in wartime. He instructed the secret service to investigate the cause of the tragedy.
"It was a mistake to transport both the minister and his deputy on the same helicopter. There is a serious war going on in Ukraine with terrorist attacks inside the country. All sorts of incidents constantly happen to planes, Ukrainian pilots have been without rest for a year," Shalamanov commented.
He believes that Russia is constantly changing its tactics because it is constantly failing.
"Diplomacy is what President Zelensky does, and it is extremely successful. Russia is completely isolated even in the UN. Peace talks will be held after Russia leaves Ukraine," the former Defense minister concluded.