Russia’s aggressive behaviour in the Black Sea raises the question of coherent efforts by NATO members bordering the strategic sea, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told Bulgarian Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov Tuesday, two days after Bulgarian Defence Minister Todor Tagarev acknowledged the possibility of a naval conflict in the region, according to Euractiv.
The conversation between Zelenskyy and Denkov took place in Athens, which hosted the high-level meeting between the countries of the Balkans and Ukraine, with Zelenskyy once again thanking Denkov for the military assistance Sofia is providing to Kyiv, including the expected 100 armoured personnel carriers.
Answering a question about the possibility of a war between NATO and Russia in the Black Sea on Sunday, Tagarev said such an option cannot be ruled out.
“We are working to prevent it. Russia is constantly provoking NATO,” Tagarev commented to Nova TV. He added that Russia is independently imposing regimes in the Black Sea and is aggressively trying to impose its will.
According to him, the Kremlin is using ships from its naval forces to prevent grain export from Ukraine, referring to the incident in which a Russian warship fired a warning shot to stop a Palau-flagged dry cargo ship in the Black Sea.
On 21 August, Tagarev met with his Ukrainian counterpart, Oleksiy Reznikov, in Odessa. After the meeting, it became clear that Bulgaria would help Ukraine demine the Black Sea.
“Russian provocations in the Black Sea impede free shipping, increase the risk of incidents and escalation of tensions. In these conditions, the close coordination of efforts with our coastal allies Romania and Turkey aims to strengthen our surveillance and situational awareness,” Tagarev said.
Tagarev’s visit caused a reaction from the pro-Russian Bulgarian Socialist Party, which demanded that the minister of defence be heard in parliament.
Oleksiy Reznikov announced that he discussed with Tagarev the issue of demining the Black Sea. “This problem is a common challenge for the four Black Sea countries – Ukraine, Bulgaria, Turkey and Ukraine,” the Ukrainian minister said.
Tagarev said that demining the Black Sea is an important task for the Bulgarian Navy and announced the ongoing monitoring of mines in Bulgarian territorial waters.
Since May 2023, a new government has been in power in Bulgaria, which enjoys the support of the pro-European parties We Continue the Change, GERB (EPP), the liberal coalition Democratic Bulgaria (EPP, The Green), and unofficially from the Turkish minority party DPS (Renew).
The new government has wholly changed Bulgaria’s policy towards Ukraine, led by the government of pro-Russian President Rumen Radev, and openly supports the authorities in Kyiv against the Russian invasion.