Bulgaria to send 100 Soviet-era APCs to Ukraine bypassing president’s veto.

As reported by Serge Havrylets on Euromaidan on December 8, the Bulgarian parliament overrode President Roumen Radev's veto on an agreement to supply Ukraine with 100 Soviet-era armored personnel carriers. This decision, initially ratified last month, includes the provision of corresponding armaments and spare parts at no charge. The agreement is between Bulgaria's Interior Ministry and Ukraine's Defence Ministry.
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The Bulgarian Army still uses several Soviet-era armored personnel carriers, such as this BTR-60 seen in a 2018 joint exercise with the US Army (Picture source: U.S. DoD)

The Sofia Globe reported that 161 Bulgarian MPs voted in favor of overriding the veto, while 55 opposed it. In Bulgaria, a simple majority is sufficient to overturn a presidential veto. Since his inauguration in January 2017, President Radev has vetoed 34 legislative acts.

President Radev had previously vetoed this agreement, arguing that the armored vehicles, stored in Bulgarian Interior Ministry warehouses for decades, could be repurposed domestically for border policing or firefighting. He suggested that lawmakers failed to thoroughly evaluate if these vehicles were no longer needed in Bulgaria for disaster response or border protection.

Furthermore, President Radev has consistently been against Bulgaria providing military support to Ukraine, citing concerns that sending Soviet-era equipment would deplete Bulgaria’s defense resources and potentially entangle the nation in the conflict.

The decision to supply these vehicles, which are about 40 years old and have been unused for many years, is aimed at bolstering Ukraine's defensive capabilities amidst the ongoing Russian invasion.

Defense News December 2023