SOFIA: Bulgaria’s parliament on Wednesday voted to allow the United States to base refuelling planes in the country, as President Trump threatens to further escalate military attacks on Iran.
The US administration had made the request on Friday, and parliament approved it with 136 votes in favour, 13 against and two abstentions. The agreement comes after Trump castigated Nato members for not helping the United States in the war it began by attacking Iran in February.
Bulgaria will authorise the deployment of up to eight KC-135 tanker aircraft and up to 250 military personnel, tasked with supporting operations in the Middle East.
They will be stationed at Bezmer Air Base in the south-east, from 24 July to 1 October 2026. A 2006 defence agreement between Bulgaria and the United States allows US forces access to several Bulgarian military installations, including Bezmer.
Sofia plays down Tehran warning over tanker aircraft
On Tuesday, Tehran warned that the authorisation would make Bulgaria “an accomplice to aggressors and criminals”. Iran has retaliated against US attacks by firing drones and missiles at Middle Eastern countries housing US bases, causing extensive damage to military and energy installations.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Roumen Radev assured on Wednesday that Bulgaria would not be used as a base for attacks on Iran.
“These refuelling aircraft will be used exclusively for logistical and in-flight refuelling missions outside Bulgarian airspace,” he said.
Iran warning
Bulgaria played down on Wednesday Iran’s warning that its plan to host US tanker aircraft would constitute complicity in “aggression and war crimes” in the Middle East, arguing that the planes would only serve logistical purposes. Prime Minister Rumen Radev said it was “categorically out of the question for military operations in the Middle East to be conducted from Bulgarian territory”.
“These tanker aircraft are intended solely for logistical missions, and they will be refuelled outside Bulgarian airspace,” Bulgarian media quoted Radev as telling ministers. The government said on Monday it would seek parliamentary approval to station up to eight US tanker aircraft at an air base in the Balkan country, which is a member of Nato and the European Union.
Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2026