Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said in Dublin that Sofia cannot provide financial assistance to Ukraine under an EU deficit procedure and will not send further weapons from army stockpiles.
On the sidelines of an informal European Council meeting in Dublin on Friday, Bulgaria’s prime minister set a hard limit on what Sofia will still give Kyiv.
“We will not provide any more weapons and ammunition from the Bulgarian Army’s stocks,” Rumen Radev told reporters, according to the Bulgarian News Agency.
He said that position had been clear since his government took office in May.
Radev said Bulgaria cannot provide financial assistance in the current circumstances because it is under an EU excessive deficit procedure and faces problems with its financial reserves.
The comments came as EU leaders discussed a new loan to cover part of Ukraine’s estimated €70 billion financing gap next year, after Friedrich Merz pressed all members to contribute.
Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Bulgaria have already rejected tying that funding to approval of the EU’s next long-term budget.
“Whoever decides to help and invest financial resources in whatever they choose should do so. In this situation, we are not blocking anyone,” Radev said.
