Before the announcement concerning the funds for Ukraine, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev was calling on the EU to intensify dialogue with Russia in order to help bring the war to an end and reduce the risk of a nuclear escalation. The statements were made at a defense and space summit in Brussels, and Radev criticized the emphasis Europeans placed on military support, saying that a “peace order” should be established through diplomacy.
At the same time, Radev received praise from Moscow for more restrained rhetoric toward Russia: Russian authorities said they appreciated that the change in Sofia had “rational” elements and indicated that, although Russian-Bulgarian cooperation was not being discussed immediately, Bulgaria remained politically dependent on Brussels.
Meanwhile, in Brussels, Radev supported a controversial Trump–Putin agreement on diesel fuel supplies and criticized Ukraine’s attacks on Russian refineries, arguing that strikes against energy infrastructure should not be supported regardless of which side is targeted.
