On September 8 it became known that Bulgaria had refused to allow Russian military transport aircraft to fly to Syria through the Bulgarian airspace in the period September 1 - 24. The Foreign Ministry said that the refusal was caused by incorrect information about the purpose of the flight. Defence Minister Nikolay Nenchev revealed the cargo was declared as humanitarian aid, while the foreign ministry had information the planes carry weapons. Sharp reactions from Moscow followed, suggesting new clouds in Bulgarian-Russian relations.

Representative of the Russian Federation Committee on Foreign Affairs voiced regrets that Bulgaria was the first one to give up to pressure from the U.S. on Balkan countries to stop flights of Russian aircraft with humanitarian aid to Syria. Deputy Chairman of the Russian Duma vowed that Moscow would find an adequate response to the “unfriendly act.” The Russian Foreign Ministry demanded an explanation for the refusal.

This is not the first case of Sofia refusing air corridors to Russia. In June 1999 Bulgaria refused to give access to its airspace to Russia that wanted to strengthen its presence in Kosovo. At that time Bulgaria was not a member of NATO, but it is now and carefully monitors the situation in Syria. On Saturday US Secretary of State John Kerry expressed concerns about the alleged Russian military presence in Syria and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov answered that the Russian side has never hidden its intention to deliver military equipment to the Syrian authorities in order to fight the terrorists.

Doubts about the cargo Russia transports to Syria have also previously existed. Three years ago Airbus A320 aircraft was forced to land in Turkey en route from Moscow to Damascus because of suspicions that it was carrying Russian military equipment. Suspicions were not confirmed then, but now they also exist.

It is not clear whether Sofia would provide additional explanations about the refusal, as the spokeswoman of the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry Bettina Joteva actually already explained that the plane was not allowed passage due to reasonable doubts that the cargo was different than what was declared.

However, another issue comes up to mind. If it is true that the refusal was not of significant importance to Moscow, as it used other corridors, then why was access actually demanded? There is no answer to this question but it seems the real reason was not the intention to transport humanitarian aid.

Whatever the doubts, it is clear that episodes of tension in relations between Bulgaria and Russia have become something chronic. And this is a pity, even if both sides stood at opposite political poles.

English: Alexander Markov