The Bulgarian Prime Minister, Rumen Radev, assured this Tuesday that he decided not to accept the invitation extended by French President Emmanuel Macron to attend the meeting of the coalition of volunteers created to coordinate aid to Ukraine, emphasizing that it is a forum in which "Bulgaria has no place".
"Personally, I received an invitation from President Macron to participate in the so-called coalition of volunteers, but I believe that Bulgaria has no place there, because we do not participate in a coalition that insists on continuous financial and military assistance to Ukraine," he stated in declarations from France, where he is participating this Tuesday in the parade for the French national day celebrating the storming of the Bastille.
In this vein, he reiterated Sofia's official stance on the war in Ukraine, remarking that the country remains on the sidelines of this type of support. "I believe that the solution to this conflict lies in the diplomatic path," he insisted, in statements reported by the Bulgarian newspaper "Telegraph".
When asked about the possibility of Bulgaria joining the anti-missile coalition promoted by a group of ten European countries within the framework of the Ukraine support group, Radev stressed that decisions on collective security "are made in another framework," alluding to NATO and the European Union, organizations in which he claimed Bulgaria "actively participates." "These decisions are made within the framework of the EU and NATO, where Bulgaria has weight and presence," he pointed out.
Radev, a former commander of the Bulgarian Air Force and who previously held the Presidency of the country between 2017 and 2026, is seen as a leader close to the Kremlin's positions and maintains his refusal for Bulgaria to be involved in sending weaponry to Ukraine, insisting that Europe must opt for an "autonomous solution" to the conflict.