Bulgaria approves transfer of S-300 missiles to Ukraine for repair and reuse
The Bulgarian Defense Committee has approved a draft decision on transferring faulty S-300 anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine so that Ukrainians can bring them into a suitable for use in air defense, The Sofia Globe agency reports.
The three-hour debate session on the provision lasted until the committee moved to a closed session to hear from the Bulgarian commander-in-chief, Admiral Emil Eftimov.
The draft decision, tabled on September 26 and signed by Boiko Borissov, Delyan Peevski, Hristo Ivanov, and Kiril Petkov, also provides for Bulgaria to give Ukraine 5.56 caliber cartridges from Interior Ministry stores that are surplus to requirements.
Those supporting the draft decision said that the S-300 missile systems had been deemed to be unserviceable by the military, and while it was not possible to repair the missiles in Bulgaria, Ukraine had the capacity to use them.
In the absence of an official announcement of the voting results, MP Delian Peevski said that the decision was approved on Wednesday, with the pro-Kremlin Renaissance Party opposed and the Bulgarian Socialist Party leaving the meeting room during the closed part.
During the open part of the debate, the chairman of the parliamentary defense committee, Hristo Gadzhev, said that the ammunition in question was unusable, and even the manufacturer could not repair it because it was too old.
Gadzhev assured that the number of missiles to be provided to Ukraine is minimal and will not threaten the Bulgarian army's combat capability.
An additional advantage, he said, is that the risk to Bulgarian soldiers from the storage of such unusable ammunition will be eliminated.
Our country does not have the necessary capacity to independently repair these munitions. Their use by our army would create a serious risk to the lives of Bulgarian servicemen. Unlike Bulgaria, Ukraine has declared that it has the capacity to put such defective munitions into service and have them serve of the Ukrainian army, the signatories said in an explanatory memorandum appended to the draft decision.
Supplying the missiles would improve the defense of Ukrainian cities against Russian air attacks, while the cartridges could be used by Ukrainian soldiers equipped with NATO small arms.
