A logistical operation to send military and military-technical aid to Ukraine began Friday, Dec. 23, according to the Bulgarian Defense Ministry’s press service.
“Starting today, a logistic operation will be carried out in which the aid approved by the National Assembly will be sent to Ukraine,” said Deputy Defense Minister Ekaterina Gramatikova.
In turn, the country’s defense chief Admiral Emil Eftimov said that the course of negotiations or the provision of military assistance must remain confidential.
“Learned conclusions about the course of hostilities in Ukraine – not only on the basis of the tactics and equipment used, but also the logistics system, the state and capabilities of the DIC in both our country and NATO and EU allies. On this basis, we proposed a certain set of weapons and equipment,” he said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, by his decrees dated December 23, replaced the ambassadors of Ukraine to the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of Latvia.
By decree No. 879/2022, the head of state dismissed Vitaliy Moskalenko from the post of Ambassador of Ukraine to Bulgaria and by decree No. 880/2022 appointed Olesia Ilaschuk to this post.
Also, by decree No. 881/2022, Zelensky dismissed Oleksandr Mischenko from the post of ambassador to Latvia.
“To appoint Anatoliy Kutsevol as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of Latvia,” decree No. 882/2022 says.
The ninth package of EU sanctions against Russia adopted on Friday allows Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia, which received a reprieve from the European Union’s oil embargo on Russian oil, to export oil products produced from it to Ukraine.
The EU Council resolution published in the EU Official Journal on December 16 says the decision “allows Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria to export to Ukraine certain refined products derived from Russian crude oil imported on the basis of the considered derogations (from the embargo – IF), including, if necessary, by transit through other member states.”
Another paragraph of the ruling allows Bulgaria to “export to third countries certain petroleum products derived from Russian crude oil imported on the basis of the derogations under consideration.
The publication attributes this to the need to “reduce environmental and safety risks, as such products cannot be safely stored in Bulgaria.
The document specifies that the respective annual exports should not exceed the average annual volume of exports of such products for the last five years.
Bulgaria’s parliament on Friday approved a list of weapons that will be sent to Ukraine as aid for the first time since the full-scale Russian invasion, Reuters reported.
“The weapons list is classified, but government officials said Sofia will send mainly light weapons and ammunition,” the report said.
A total of 148 deputies from the 240-member parliament voted in favor of sending aid Friday, while the Socialists and the pro-Russian Revival Party voted against it.
Acting Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said Bulgaria, a NATO member, could not afford to send its Russian-made surface-to-air missile systems or the MiG-19 and Su-25 fighters Kiev needs.
“My approach was conservative because I need to ensure Bulgaria’s defense capability. The aid is fully in line with Ukraine’s priorities, but we are not sending S-300 systems or MiG-29 or Su-25 aircraft,” Stoyanov told Nova TV in a commentary.
Bulgaria has reportedly not previously sent weapons to Ukraine, but its arms manufacturers have seen a sharp increase in exports, a November report from the Bulgarian Industrial Association showed. In August, the Ministry of Economy approved arms export deals worth more than 1 billion leva ($540.22 million), most of which were destined for Poland, one of the key hubs for sending weapons to Ukraine.
According to Reuters, Bulgaria was one of the few EU countries that did not send aid to Ukraine after the Russia-friendly Socialist Party, a coalition partner in the previous government, blocked a previous proposal in May.
Three dry cargo ships carrying corn and sunflower seeds left Ukrainian ports on Friday, the Joint Coordination Center (JCC) reported.
“Three ships left Ukrainian ports on December 2, carrying a total of 106,500 tons of grain and other agricultural products under the Black Sea Grain Initiative,” the report said.
Vessel Aspasia Luck is transporting 63 thousand tons of corn to China, Sea Inspiration is delivering 26.5 thousand tons of corn to Italy. Lady Perla dry-cargo carrier will carry 17 thousand tons of sunflower seeds to Bulgaria.
Three vessels, which passed through the sea humanitarian corridor on December 2, are also on their way to Ukrainian ports.
“As of December 2, the total tonnage of grain and other agricultural products exported from the three Ukrainian ports is 12,713,836 tons. A total of 1,031 vessels have been allowed to move so far: 515 to arrive at Ukrainian ports and 516 to leave them,” the report said.
The leaders of Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia have supported the “Grain from Ukraine” initiative announced by the president of Ukraine and announced further efforts to increase existing and create new transit corridors for the export of Ukrainian grain and other agricultural products.
“Since the beginning of the war, 8.4 million tons of grains and oilseeds from Ukraine have been transited (through Romania) to consumers in the world. We expect transit exports from Ukraine to increase in the coming months,” Romanian Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca said in a video message at the international food security summit in Kiev on Saturday.
He noted that Romania has acted very strongly in support of Ukrainian grain exports through Romanian ports and will continue working to increase connectivity between the countries by land and rail, including the recent opening of a new border crossing.
Ciuche also stressed that Romania has and will not back down from supporting Ukraine and Moldova in the energy sphere. “We will not allow Russia to plunge the region into darkness,” he said.
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev said at the summit that Bulgaria has managed to transport about 200,000 tons of grain from Ukraine across the Danube in recent months, and the country intends to continue this transportation project.
“Unfortunately, the loss of power in Ukrainian ports due to Russian shelling has made this process difficult for Bulgarian vessels,” he said.
Radev also said Bulgaria is providing fuel to Ukraine so the country can support the agricultural and transportation sectors.
Croatian Prime Minister Andrea Plenkovic also supported work on new corridors for the supply of Ukrainian products as part of the EU’s Solidarity Routes project.
“Croatia is actively joining, and will attract other ports on the Adriatic and there are opportunities for corridors along the Danube River,” said the Croatian government head.
The three leaders welcomed the extension of the Black Sea Grain Initiative for another 120 days, and the Bulgarian president urged the search for stable long-term solutions.
