| Bulgarian Army | |
|---|---|
| Българска армия | |
 Logo of Ministry of Defense of Bulgaria | |
| Founded | 7 May 1878 (1878-05-07) |
| Current form | 2002 |
| Service branches | |
| Headquarters | Sofia |
| Website | mod |
| Leadership | |
| President | Rumen Radev |
| Prime Minister | Rosen Zhelyazkov |
| Minister of Defence | Atanas Zapryanov |
| Chief of the Defence | Admiral Emil Eftimov |
| Personnel | |
| Military age | 18 |
| Conscription | No |
| Active personnel | 36,950[1] |
| Reserve personnel | 3,000[1] |
| Deployed personnel | See below |
| Expenditure | |
| Budget | $2.34 billion (2024)[2] |
| Percent of GDP | 2.05% (2024)[2] |
| Industry | |
| Domestic suppliers | |
| Foreign suppliers |  Austria Czech Republic France Germany United Kingdom United StatesFormer Suppliers  Soviet Union Russia |
| Annual exports | $2.3 billion (2022)[3] |
| Related articles | |
| History | |
| Ranks | Military ranks of Bulgaria |
TheBulgarian Army (Bulgarian:Българска армия,romanized: Bŭlgarska armiya), also calledBulgarian Armed Forces (Bulgarian: Български Въоръжени сили, romanized:Bŭlgarski Vŭorŭzheni Sili), is themilitary ofBulgaria. Thecommander-in-chief is thepresident of Bulgaria. The Ministry of Defense is responsible for political leadership, while overall military command is in the hands of the Defense Staff, headed by the Chief of the Defense. There are three main branches of the Bulgarian military, named literally the Land Forces, the Air Forces and the Naval Forces (the term "Bulgarian Army" refers to them encompassed all together).
Throughout history, the Army has played a major role in defending the country'ssovereignty. Only several years after its inception in 1878, Bulgaria became a regional military power and was involved in several major wars –Serbo-Bulgarian War (1885),First Balkan War (1912–13),Second Balkan War (1913),First World War (1915–1918) andSecond World War (1941–1945), during which the Army gained considerable combat experience. During theCold War, thePeople's Republic of Bulgaria maintained one of the largest militaries in theWarsaw Pact, numbering an estimated 152,000 troops in 1988.[4] Since theFall of Communism, the political leadership has decided to pursue a pro-NATO policy, thus reducing military personnel and weaponry. Bulgaria joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on 29 March 2004.
Thepatron saint of the Bulgarian Army isSt. George. The Armed Forces Day orSt. George's Day (6 May) is an official holiday in Bulgaria.
The modern Bulgarian military dates back to 1878. On 22 July 1878 (10 July O.S.) a total of 12 battalions ofopalchentsi who participated in the Liberation war, formed the Bulgarian Armed Forces.[5] According to theTarnovo Constitution, all men between 21 and 40 years of age were eligible for military service. In 1883 the military was reorganised in four infantrybrigades (in Sofia, Pleven, Ruse and Shumen) and one cavalrybrigade.
The Serbo-Bulgarian War was the first armed conflict afterBulgaria's liberation. It was a result of theunification withEastern Rumelia, which happened on 6 September 1885. The unification was not completely recognised, however, and one of the countries that refused to recognise the act was theKingdom of Serbia. TheAustro-Hungarian Empire had been expanding its influence in theBalkans, and was particularly opposed. Serbia also feared this would diminish its dominance in the region. In addition, Serbian rulerMilan Obrenović IV was annoyed that Serbian opposition leaders likeNikola Pašić, who had escaped persecution after theTimok Rebellion, had found asylum in Bulgaria. Lured by Austria-Hungary's promises of territorial gains from Bulgaria (in return for concessions in the western Balkans), Milan IV declared war on Bulgaria on 14 November 1885.
Military strategy relied largely on surprise, as Bulgaria had moved most of its troops near the border with the Ottoman Empire, in the southeast. As it happened, the Ottomans did not intervene and the Serbian army's advance was stopped after theBattle of Slivnitsa. The main body of the Bulgarian army travelled from the Ottoman border in the southeast to the Serbian border in the northwest to defend the capital,Sofia. After the defensive battles at Slivnitsa andVidin, Bulgaria began an offensive that took the city ofPirot. At this point the Austro-Hungarian Empire stepped in, threatening to join the war on Serbia's side if Bulgarian troops did not retreat. Fighting lasted for only 14 days, from 14 to 28 November. A peace treaty was signed inBucharest on 19 February 1886. No territorial changes were made to either country, but Bulgarian unification was recognised by the Great Powers.
Instability in the Balkan region in the early 1900s quickly became a precursor for a new war. Serbia's aspirations towards Bosnia and Herzegovina were thwarted by theAustrian annexation of the province in October 1908, so the Serbs focused their attention ontoKosovo, and to the south for expansion. Greek officers,revolting in August 1909, had secured the appointment of a progressive government underEleftherios Venizelos, which they hoped would resolve theCretan issue in Greece's favor and reverse theirdefeat of 1897 by the Ottomans. Bulgaria, which had secured Ottoman recognition of its independence in April 1909 and enjoyed the friendship of Russia, also looked to districts of Ottoman Thrace and Macedonia for expansion.
In March 1910 anAlbanian insurrection broke out in Kosovo. In August Montenegro followed Bulgaria's precedent by becoming a kingdom. In 1911 Italy launched aninvasion of Tripolitania, which was quickly followed by the occupation of theDodecanese Islands. The Italians' decisive military victories over the Ottoman Empire greatly influenced the Balkan states to prepare for war against Turkey. Thus, in the spring of 1912 consultations among the various Christian Balkan nations resulted in a network of military alliances that became known as theBalkan League. The Great Powers, most notably France and Austria-Hungary, reacted to this diplomatic sensation by trying to dissuade the League from going to war, but failed.
In late September both the League and the Ottoman Empire mobilised their armies. Montenegro was the first to declare war, on 25 September (O.S.)/ 8 October. The other three states, after issuing an impossible ultimatum to the Porte on 13 October, declared war on Turkey on 17 October. The Balkan League relied on 700,000 troops, 370,000 of whom were Bulgarians. Bulgaria, often dubbed the "Prussia of the Balkans",[6] was militarily the most powerful of the four states, with a large, well-trained and well-equipped army.[7] The peacetime army of 60,000 troops was expanded during the war to 370,000,[7] with almost 600,000 men mobilized in total out of a population of 4,300,000.[8] The Bulgarian field army consisted of nine infantry divisions, one cavalry division and 1,116 artillery units.[7] Commander-in-Chief wasTsar Ferdinand, while the actual command was in the hands of his deputy, Gen. Mikhail Savov. The Bulgarians also possessed a small navy of six torpedo boats, which were restricted to operations along the country'sBlack Sea coast.[9]
Bulgaria's war aims were focused onThrace andMacedonia. For the latter, Bulgaria had a secret agreement with Serbia to divide it between them, signed on 13 March 1912 during the negotiations that led to the establishment of the Balkan League. However, it was not a secret that Bulgaria's target was the fulfillment of the never-materializedTreaty of San Stefano, signed after theRusso-Turkish War, 1877–78. They deployed their main force in Thrace, forming three armies. TheFirst Army, under Gen.Vasil Kutinchev with three infantry divisions, was deployed to the south ofYambol, with direction of operations along theTundzha River. TheSecond Army, under Gen.Nikola Ivanov with two infantry divisions and one infantry brigade, was deployed west of the First and was assigned to capture the strong fortress of Adrianople (nowEdirne). According to the plans, theThird Army, under Gen.Radko Dimitriev, was deployed east of and behind the First and was covered by the cavalry division hiding it from the Turkish view. The Third Army had three infantry divisions and was assigned to cross the Stranja mountain and to take the fortress of Lozengrad (Kirk Kilisse). The 2nd and 7th divisions were assigned independent roles, operating inwestern Thrace and eastern Macedonia, respectively.
The first great battles were at theAdrianople–Kirk Kilisse defensive line, where the Bulgarian 1st and 3rd Armies (together 110,000 men) defeated the Ottoman East Army (130,000 men) near Gechkenli, Seliolu, and Petra. The fortress ofAdrianople wasbesieged andKirk Kilisse was taken without resistance under the pressure of the Bulgarian Third Army. The initial Bulgarian attack by First and Third Army defeated the Turkish forces, numbering some 130,000, and reached theSea of Marmara. However, the Turks, with the aid of fresh reinforcements from the Asian provinces, established their third and strongest defensive position at theChataldja Line, across the peninsula whereConstantinople is located. New Turkish forces landed atBulair andŞarköy, but after heavy fighting they were crushed by the newly formed 4th Bulgarian Army under the command of GenStiliyan Kovachev. The offensive atChataldja failed, too. On 11 March the final Bulgarianassault on Adrianople began. Under the command of Gen.Georgi Vazov the Bulgarians, reinforced with two Serb divisions, conquered the "untakeable" city. On 17/30 May a peace treaty was signed between Turkey and the Balkan Alliance. The First Balkan War, which lasted from October 1912-May 1913, strengthened Bulgaria's position as a regional military power, significantly reduced Ottoman influence over the Balkans and resulted in the formation of an independent Albanian state.
The peace settlement of the First Balkan War proved unsatisfactory for both Serbia and Bulgaria. Serbia refused to cede a part of the territories in Macedonia, which it occupied and promised to give to Bulgaria according to a secret agreement. Serbia, on its side, was not satisfied with the independence of Albania and sought a secret alliance with Greece. Armed skirmishes between Serbian and Bulgarian troops occurred.
On 16 June 1913, just a few months after the end of the first war, the Bulgarian government ordered an attack on Serbian and Greek positions in Macedonia, without declaring war. Almost all of Bulgaria's 500,000-man standing army was positioned against these two countries, on two fronts—western and southern—while the borders with Romania and theOttoman Empire were left almost unguarded. Montenegro sent a 12,000-strong force to assist the Serbs. Exhausted from the previous war, which took the highest toll on Bulgaria, the Bulgarian army soon turned to the defensive. Romania attacked from the north and northeast and the Ottoman Empire also intervened inThrace. Allied numerical superiority was almost 2:1. After a month and two days of fighting, the war ended as a moral disaster for Bulgaria, and at the same time its economy was ruined and its military demoralised.
TheKingdom of Bulgaria participated in World War I on the side of theCentral Powers between 15 October 1915, when the country declared war onSerbia, and 29 September 1918, when theArmistice of Thessalonica was signed. In the aftermath of theBalkan Wars, Bulgarian opinion turned against Russia and the western powers, whom the Bulgarians felt had done nothing to help them. The government ofVasil Radoslavov aligned the country withGermany andAustria-Hungary, even though this meant also becoming an ally of the Ottomans, Bulgaria's traditional enemy. However, Bulgaria now had no claims against the Ottomans, whereas Serbia, Greece and Romania (allies of Britain and France) were all in possession of lands perceived in Bulgaria as its own.
In 1915 Germany promised to restore the boundaries according to theTreaty of San Stefano and Bulgaria, which had the largest army in the Balkans, declared war on Serbia in October of that year. In the First World War Bulgaria decisively asserted its military capabilities. Thesecond Battle of Doiran, with Gen.Vladimir Vazov as commander, inflicted a heavy blow on the numerically superiorBritish army, which suffered 12,000 casualties against 2,000 from the opposite side. One year later, during thethird battle of Doiran, the United Kingdom, supported by Greece, once again suffered a humiliating defeat, losing 3,155 men against just about 500 on the Bulgarian side. The reputation of theFrench army also suffered badly. TheBattle of the Red Wall was marked by the total defeat of the French forces, with 5,700 out of 6,000 men killed. The 261 Frenchmen who survived were captured by Bulgarian soldiers.
Despite the outstanding victories, Germany was near defeat, which meant that Bulgaria would be left without its most powerful ally. TheRussian Revolution of February 1917 had a great effect in Bulgaria, spreading antiwar and anti-monarchist sentiment among the troops and in the cities. In June Radoslavov's government resigned. In 1919 Bulgaria officially left the war with theTreaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine.
The Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine proved to be a severe blow to Bulgaria's military. According to the treaty, the country had no right to organize aconscription-based military. The professional army was to be no more than 20,000 men, including 10,000 internal forces and 3,000 border guards. Equipping the army with tanks, submarines, bombers and heavy artillery was strictly prohibited, although Bulgaria managed to get around some of these prohibitions. Nevertheless, on the eve of World War II the Bulgarian army was still well-trained and well-equipped. In fact, the Bulgarian Army had been expanded in 1935.[10]
The government of theKingdom of Bulgaria under Prime MinisterBogdan Filov declared a position of neutrality upon the outbreak of World War II. Bulgaria was determined to observe it until the end of the war but it hoped for bloodless territorial gains, especially in the lands with a significant Bulgarian population occupied by neighbouring countries after theSecond Balkan War and World War I. However, it was clear that the central geopolitical position of Bulgaria in the Balkans would inevitably lead to strong external pressure by both World War II factions. Turkey had anon-aggression pact with Bulgaria. On 7 September 1940 Bulgaria succeeded in negotiating a recovery ofSouthern Dobruja with theTreaty of Craiova (seeSecond Vienna Award). Southern Dobruja had been part of Romania since 1913. This recovery of territory reinforced hopes for resolving other territorial problems without direct involvement in the war. The country joined theAxis powers in 1941, whenGerman troops preparing to invadeYugoslavia and Greece reached the Bulgarian borders and demanded permission to pass through its territory.
On 1 March 1941, Bulgaria signed theTripartite Pact and officially joined the Axis bloc. After a short period of inaction, the army launched an operation againstYugoslavia and Greece. The goal of reaching the shores of theAegean Sea and completely occupying the region of Macedonia was successful. Even though Bulgaria did not send any troops to support theGerman invasion of the Soviet Union, its navy was involved in a number of skirmishes with theSoviet Black Sea Fleet, which attacked Bulgarian shipping. Besides this, Bulgarian Armed Forces garrisoned in the Balkans battled various resistance groups. The Bulgarian government declared a token war on the United Kingdom and the United States near the end of 1941, an act that resulted in thebombing of Sofia and other Bulgarian cities byAllied aircraft.
Some communist activists managed to begin a guerrilla movement, headed by the undergroundBulgarian Communist Party. A resistance movement calledOtechestven front (Fatherland front, Bulgarian: Отечествен фронт) was set up in August 1942 by the Communist Party, theZveno movement and a number of other parties to oppose the elected government, after a number of Allied victories indicated that the Axis might lose the War. In 1943 TsarBoris III died suddenly. In the summer of 1944, after having crushed the Nazi defense aroundIaşi andChişinău, theSoviet Army was approaching the Balkans and Bulgaria. On 23 August 1944 Romania quit the Axis Powers, declared war on Germany and allowed Soviet forces to cross its territory to reach Bulgaria. On 26 August 1944 the Fatherland Front made the decision to incite an armed rebellion against the government, which led to the appointment of a new government on 2 September. Support for the government was withheld by the Fatherland Front, since it was composed of pro-Nazi elements, in a desperate attempt to hold on to power. On 5 September 1944 the Soviet Union declared war and invaded Bulgaria.[11] On 8 September 1944 the Bulgarian army joined the Soviet Union in its war against Germany.
As theRed Army invaded Bulgaria in 1944[12] and installed a communist government, the armed forces were rapidly forced to reorganise following the Soviet model, and were renamed theBulgarian People's Army (Bohlgarska Narodna Armija, BNA). Moscow quickly supplied Bulgaria withT-34-85 tanks,SU-100 guns,Il-2 attack planes and other new combat machinery. As the country was a Soviet satellite, it was a part of theEastern Bloc and entered theWarsaw Pact as one of its founders. By this time the army had expanded to over 200,000 men with hundreds of thousands of more reserve troops. Military service was obligatory. A specialdefensive line, known as theKrali Marko defensive line, was constructed along the entire border with Turkey. It was heavily fortified with concrete walls and turrets of T-34,Panzer III andPanzer IV tanks.
The army was involved in a number of border skirmishes from 1948 to 1952, repulsing several Greek attacks,[13] and took part in the suppression of thePrague Spring events. In the meantime, during the rule ofTodor Zhivkov, a significant military-industrial complex was established, capable of producing armored vehicles, self-propelled artillery, small arms and ammunition, as well as aircraft engines and spare parts. Bulgaria provided weapons and military expertise to Algeria, Yemen, Libya, Iraq, Nicaragua, Egypt and Syria. Some military and medical aid was also supplied to North Korea andNorth Vietnam in the 1950s and 1960s. During the 1970s the Air Force was at the apogee of its power, possessing at least 500 modern combat aircraft in its inventory. Training in the Bulgarian People's Army was exhaustive even by Soviet standards; however, it was never seen as a major force within the Warsaw Pact.[14] In 1989, when theCold War was coming to its end, the army (the combined number of ground, air and naval forces) numbered about 120,000 men, most of them conscripts. There were, however, several services which, while falling outside of Ministry of Defense jurisdiction in peacetime, were considered part of the armed forces. These were foremost the Labour Troops (construction forces), thePeople's Militia (the police forces of the country, which fell under Ministry of the Interior jurisdiction, but the ministry was itself a militarized structure) and, more importantly, its Interior Troops, the Border Troops—which in different periods fell under either Ministry of Defense or Ministry of the Interior control—Civil Defense Service, the Signals Troops (government communications) and the Transport Troops (mostly railway infrastructure maintenance), which were two separate services under the Postal and Communications Committee (a ministry), etc. The combined strength of the Bulgarian People's Army and all those services reached well over 325,000 troops.
With the collapse of theWarsaw Pact & the end of theCold War, Bulgaria could no longer support a vast military. A rapid reduction in personnel & active equipment was to be carried out in parallel with a general re-alignment of strategic interests. In 1990, Bulgaria had a total of more than 2,400 tanks, 2,000 armored vehicles, 2,500 large caliber artillery systems,[15] 300 fighter & bomber aircraft, 100 trainer aircraft, more than 40 combat & 40 transport helicopters,[16] 4 submarines, 6 fast missile craft, 2 frigates, 5 corvettes, 6 torpedo boats, 9 patrol craft, 30 minesweepers, and 21 transport vessels.[17] Due to the economic crisis that affected most former Eastern bloc countries, a steady reform in the military could not be carried out; much of the equipment fell into disrepair and some of it was smuggled and sold to the international black market. Inadequate payments, fuel & spare part shortages and the disbandment of many capable units led to an overall drop in combat readiness, morale & discipline.
After partially recovering from the 1990s crisis, the Bulgarian military became a part ofNATO. Even before that, Bulgaria sent a total of 485 soldiers to Iraq (2003–2008) as a participant in theIraq War and maintained a 608-men strong force in Afghanistan as part ofISAF. Bulgaria had a significant missile arsenal, including 67SCUD-B, 50FROG-7 & 24SS-23 ballistic missiles.[18] In 2002, Bulgaria disbanded theRocket Forces despite nationwide protests and has disbanded its submarine component. Bulgaria is to have 27,000 standing troops by 2014, consisting of 14,310 troops in the land forces, 6,750 in the air force, 3,510 in the navy, and 2,420 in the joint command.[19] In 2018, the Bulgarian Armed Forces numbered around 33,150 soldiers, 73 aircraft, 2234 vehicles, including 531 tanks, and 29 naval assets.
The Bulgarian Armed Forces are headquartered inSofia, where most of the Defence staff is based. Until recently the supreme military institution was the General Staff and the most senior military officer was known as the Chief of the General Staff. After the latest military reform has been implemented the General Staff became a department within the Ministry of Defence and for that matter its name had to be changed to match the new situation. For that reason the former GS became the Defence Staff and the supreme military commander became the Chief of Defence.[20] Currently headed by Chief of Defence admiralEmil Eftimov, the Defence Staff is responsible for operational command of the Bulgarian Army and its three major branches. Deputies: Vice Admiral Petar Petrov, General Atanas Zaprianov, General Dimitar Zekhtinov.
Supreme officer rank assignments in the Bulgarian Army and other militarised services
Established by Executive Order of thePresident No. 85 / 28.02.2012,[21] most recent amendment published in theState Gazette Issue 10 from February 2, 2024:[22]
Ministry of Defence
In addition to the aforementioned positions, there are general rank positions in the National Intelligence Service and the National Close Protection Service (the bodyguard service to high-ranking officials and visiting dignitaries). These two services are considered part of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Bulgaria, but are directly subordinated to the President of Bulgaria and fall out of the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defense.
With the establishment of theState Agency for National Security - SANS (Bulgarian: Darzhavna Agentsiya za Natsionalna Sigurnost - DANS, Държавна агенция за национална сигурност - ДАНС) part of the military security personnel came under its authority. Before that the security aspects of the armed forces were handled by a unified organisation under the General Staff - the "Military Service of Security and Military Police". After the formation of SANS the service was split, with the military counter-intelligence personnel entering the newly formed structure and the military police personnel staying under Ministry of Defense subordination. While technically civilian servants not part of the armed forces, the military counter-intelligence personnel of the State Agency of National Security retain their military ranks.
Ministry of Defence
The organisation of the Ministry of Defence includes:[24]
Structures directly subordinated to the Ministry of Defence include:
TheJoint Operational Command (Съвместно оперативно командване (СОК)) was established on October 15, 2004, with HQ in Sofia. The country became member ofNATO in the same year and this reorganisation was done to streamline the Bulgarian Armed Forces to NATO practices. The planning and execution of military operation was transferred from the respective armed service commands to a joint organisation.
In 2010 the Ministry of Defence completed a thorough study of the defence policy and issued aWhite Book, or aWhite Paper on Defence, calling for a major overhaul of the structure of Defence Forces. On July 1, 2011, the Joint Operational Command was reorganised into theJoint Forces Command (Съвместно командване на силите (СКС)) According to the document the military of the Republic of Bulgaria should include two mechanizedbrigades, four regiments (Logistics, Artillery, Engineering, SpecOps), fourbattalions (Reconnaissance, Mechanized, NBC, psychological operations) in the Land Forces; two air bases, SAM air defense base and Air force training base in the Air Force; and one naval base consisting of two homeports in the Navy. There are seven brigade level formations, including the two mechanised brigades and the special forces brigade of the army, the two air bases of the air force, the naval base and the logistical brigade of the JOC.
On September 1, 2021, the Joint Forces Command was reorganised again in accordance with the Development Plant for the Armed Forces until 2026 (План за развитие на Въоръжените сили до 2026 г.), set in action by Resolution of the Government No. 183/07.05.2021.[30] The logistics brigade and the movement control units of the JFC formed the Logistics Support Command. Since then the Joint Forces Command has seven units directly subordinated to it:[31]
The Joint Forces Training Range "Novo Selo" used to be under the JFC, but the latest re-organisation of the Command from 2021 lists seven subordinated units,[32] so the training range is no longer part of it, but it is unclear if it was subordinated to the Land Forces or the Logistical Support Command.
With the introduction of the new force structure of the Bulgarian Armed Forces the commands of three armed services of the Bulgarian Army - the Land, Air and Naval Forces are responsible for the generation of combat-ready forces, which are transferred under the operational command and control of the JFC.
Under the previous structure they were subordinated to the JFC.
The logistics units of the JFC were re-arranged into the newly formed Logistical Support Command (Командване за логистична поддръжка (КЛП)):
The previous 62nd Signals Brigade atGorna Malina[34] was responsible for maintaining the higher military communication lines. Next to the functions of the Signals Regiment in the Sofia suburb of Suhodol, the brigade had at least three dispersedsignals regiments for government communications, such as the 75th Signals Regiment (Lovech), the 65th Signals Regiment (Nova Zagora) and at least one additional unknown Signals Regiment in theRila-Pirin mountain massif. The modern successor of the 62nd Signals Brigade are the Stationary Communication and Information System (Стационарна Комуникационна Информационна Система (СКИС))[35] of the Defence Staff (which fulfils also the tasks ofSIGINT andCyber Defence next to its strategic communications mission) and the Mobile Communication and Information System (Мобилна Комуникационна Информационна Система (МКИС)) of the Joint Forces Command.[36]
On September 1, 2021, the Stationary Communications and Information System, which was directly subordinated to the Minister of Defence, became the Communications and Information Support and Cyber-Defence Command (Командване за комуникационно-информационна поддръжка и киберотбрана (ККИПКО)).
The68th Special Forces Brigade was removed from the Land Forces' ORBAT on 1 February 2017,[37] de facto becoming the country's fourth combat service. Unlike Bulgaria's Land, Air and Naval Forces, however, it fell outside of the Joint Forces Command structure, having been assigned directly under the authority of the Chief of Defence. The brigade was transformed into the JSOC, taking effect on November 1, 2019, and its commander,Brigade General Yavor Mateev was promoted to amajor general as the chief of the new command.
Bulgaria's total military personnel as of 2014 is 37,100, of which 30,400 (80.1%) are active military personnel and 8,100 (11.9%) are civilian personnel. The Land Forces are the largest branch, with at least 18,000 men serving there. In terms of percentage, 53% of all Army personnel are in the Land Forces, 25% are in the Air Force, 13% are in the Navy and 9% are in the Joint Forces Command.[39] Annual spending per soldier amounts to 30,000 leva (~ 15,000 euro) and is scheduled to increase to 43,600 leva by 2014.[40]
Unlike many former Soviet bloc militaries,discipline and morale problems are not common.[41][42] During the Communist era, the army members enjoyed extensive social privileges. After the fall of Communism and Bulgaria's transition to amarket economy, wages fell severely. For almost a decade social benefits were virtually non-existent, and some of them have been restored but recently.Nikolai Tsonev, defence minister under the 2005–2009 cabinet, undertook steps to provide the members of the military and their families with certain privileges in terms of healthcare and education, and to improve living conditions.[43]
Military education in Bulgaria is provided in military universities and academies. Due to cuts in spending and manpower some universities have been disbanded and their campuses were included as faculties of other, larger educational entities. The largest institutions of military education in Bulgaria are:
The Land Forces practice extensive year-round military training in various conditions. Cooperative drills with the United States are very common, the last series of them conducted in 2008. Bulgaria's most recent full-scale exercise simulating a foreign invasion was carried out in 2009. It was conducted at theKoren range, and included some 1,700 personnel with tanks, ATGMs, attack aircraft, AA guns and armored vehicles.[44] The combat skills of individual soldiers are on a very high level, on par with troops of the U.S. Army.[45]
Until recent years the Air Force suffered somewhat from fuel shortages; a problem which was overcome in 2008. Fighter pilots have year-round flights, but gunship pilots do not fly often due to the yet unfulfilled modernization of theMi-24 gunships. Due to financial difficulties fighter pilots have 60 hours of flying time per year, only a third of the national norm of 180 hours.[46]
The Navy also has some fuel shortage problems, but military training is still effective. The most recent overseas operation of the Navy was along the coast of Libya as part ofOperation Unified Protector.
After the collapse of the Warsaw pact, Bulgaria lost the ability to acquire cheap fuel and spares for its military. A large portion of its nearly 2,000T-55 tanks fell into disrepair, and eventually almost all of them were scrapped or sold to other countries. In the early 1990s the budget was so small, that regulars only received token-value payments. Many educated and well-trained officers lost the opportunity to educate younger soldiers, as the necessary equipment and basis lacked adequate funding. Military spending increased gradually, especially in the last 10 years. As of 2005, the budget was no more than $400 mln., while military spending for 2009 amounted to more than $1.3 bln. – almost a triple increase for 4 years. Despite this growth, the military still does not receive sufficient funds for modernisation. An example of bad spending plans is the large-scale purchasing of transport aircraft, while the Air Force has a severe need of new fighters (theMiG-29s, even though modernised, are nearing their operational limits). The planned procurement of 2–4Gowind class corvettes has been cancelled. As of 2009, military spending was about 1.98% of GDP. In 2010 the budget is to be only 1.3% due to the international financial crisis.
The Land Forces are functionally divided intoDeployable andReserve Forces. Their main functions include deterrence, defence, peace support andcrisis management, humanitarian and rescue missions, as well as social functions within Bulgarian society. Active troops in the land forces number about 18,000 men, and reserve troops number about 13,000.[39]
The equipment of the land forces is impressive in terms of numbers, but most of it is nonoperational and scheduled to be scrapped or refurbished and exported to other nations. Bulgaria has a military stockpile of about 5,000,000 small arms, models ranging from World War II-eraMP 40 machine pistols to modernSteyr AUG,AK-74, HKMP5,HK416 and AR-M12F assault rifles.
The National Guard of Bulgaria, founded in 1879, is the successor to the personal guards ofKnyazAlexander I. On 12 July of that year, the guards escorted the Bulgarianknyaz for the first time; today the official holiday of the National Guard is celebrated on 12 July. Throughout the years the structure of the guards has evolved, going from convoy to squadron, to regiment and, subsequent to 1942, to division. Today it includes military units for army salute and wind orchestra duties.
In 2001, the National Guard unit was designated an official military unit of the Bulgarian army and one of the symbols of state authority, along with the flag, the coat of arms and the national anthem. It is a formation, directly subordinate to the Minister of Defence and while legally part of the armed forces, it is totally independent from the Defence Staff.
Note: This table shows combined active and reserve force. Most are listed here. In 2019 what remained from the scrapping of the previous new equipment some but not all of the T-72 Main battle tanks were sent for mechanical service for the first time in years.Most of the equipment that should be battle ready is in dire condition, old, rusty or non-functional, the rest about 50,000 tons of what was sold as scrap" can be found in some of the scrap depots near the railroad in Sofia including battle tanks, artillery, and other battle soviet era equipment.
| Statistics | |
| Personnel | 36,112[47] |
| Main battle tanks | <100T-72M/M1 |
| Heavy armored vehicles (IFVs andAPCs) | <1000 (BMP-23/A,BMP-1P;[48]BTR-60PB-MD1,MT-LB,MT-LBu) |
| Light armored vehicles | <500M1117 Guardian/Commando Select (7/10),BRDM-2 (<50),M1114 Humvees (50+), Sand Cat (<25),G-class (<300) |
| Artillery pieces over 100 mm (excl. mortar) | <100 (BM-21,2S1,D-20) |
| SAMs | 84 –SA-10 Grumble (10),SA-5 Gammon (10),SA-6 Gainful (20), SA-8 Gecko (24),SA-13 Gopher (20) |
| ATGM systems | AT-3 Sagger,AT-4 Spigot,AT-5 Spandrel, AT-6 Spiral,AT-7 Saxhorn,BRDM-2 Konkurs (24 vehicles) |
| MANPADS | SA-7 Grail,SA-14 Gremlin,SA-16 Gimlet,SA-18 Grouse |
| SS-21 Scarab | 8 TELs |
The Navy has traditionally been the smallest component of the Bulgarian military. Established almost simultaneously with the Ground forces in 1879, initially it consisted of a small fleet of boats on theDanube river. Bulgaria has a coastline of about 354 kilometres – thus, naval warfare is not considered a priority.
After the downturn in 1990, the Navy was largely overlooked and received almost no funding. No projects for modernisation were carried out until 2005, when aWielingen class frigate (F912 Wandelaar) was acquired from Belgium. By 2009, Bulgaria acquired two more frigates of the same class. The first of them was renamed41 Drazki and took part in several operations and exercises, most notably theUNIFIL Maritime Patrol along the coast of Lebanon in 2006, andOperation Active Endeavour. It also participated in the enforcement of the naval blockade againstMuammar Gaddafi's regime off the coast of Libya from 2011 until 2012.
The equipment is typical for a small navy, consisting mostly of light multi-purpose vessels – fourfrigates, threecorvettes, five minesweepers, three fast missile craft and two landing ships. Other equipment includes a coastal defence missile battalion armed with locally modifiedP-15 Termit missiles, a coastal artillery battery, a naval helicopter airbase and a marine special forces unit.
The Bulgarian Navy is centered in two main bases – inVarna and inBurgas.
In the past decade Bulgaria has been trying actively to restructure its army as a whole and a lot of attention has been placed on keeping the aging Russian aircraft operational. Currently the attack and defence branches of the Bulgarian air force are mainlyMiG-29s andSu-25s. About 15MiG-29 fighters have been modernised in order to meetNATO standards. The first aircraft arrived on 29 November 2007 and final delivery was due in March 2009. In 2006 the Bulgarian government signed a contract withAlenia Aeronautica for the delivery of fiveC-27J Spartan transport aircraft to replace the Soviet-madeAn-24 andAn-26, although the contract was later changed to only three aircraft. Modern EU-made transport helicopters were purchased in 2005 and a total of 12Eurocopter Cougar have been delivered (eight transport and four CSAR). Three Eurocopter AS565 Panther helicopters for the Bulgarian Navy arrived in 2016.
Branches of the Air Force include fighter aviation, assault aviation, intelligence aviation and transportation aviation, aid defence troops, radio-technical troops, communications troops, radio-technical support troops, logistics and medical troops.
The Bulgarian Ministry of Defense has announced plans to withdraw and replace the MiG-29 fighters with new F-16V Fighting Falcon by 2025–2026.[49]
With the exception of the Navy's small helicopter fleet, the Air Force are responsible for all military aircraft in Bulgaria. The Air Force's inventory numbers <50 aircraft, including combat jets and helicopters. Aircraft of Western origin have only begun to enter the fleet, making up a small number of the total in service. Most aircraft are unusable, old and inactive.
The Bulgarian-American Joint Military Facilities were established by a Defence Cooperation Agreement signed by the United States and Bulgaria in April 2006. Under the agreement, U.S. forces can conduct training at several bases in the country, which remain under Bulgarian command and under the Bulgarian flag. Under the agreement, no more than 2,500 U.S. military personnel can be located at the joint military facilities.
Foreign Policy magazine listsBezmer Air Base as one of the six most important overseas facilities used by theUSAF.[50]
Both during Communist rule and after, Bulgaria has deployed troops with different tasks in various countries. The table below lists Bulgarian military deployments in foreign countries. Active missions are shown inbold.[51]
| Country | Operation | Organisation | Timespan | Personnel | Casualties |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Libyan Arab Jamahiriya | – | People's Republic of Bulgaria | ? | a total of 9,000 military and non-military advisors[52] | – |
 Nicaragua | Nicaraguan Revolution | People's Republic of Bulgaria | 1980s | unknown number of military instructors[53] | – |
 Cambodia | peacekeeping | UNTAC | 1992–1993 | 850 troops 34 military observers 11 military police 10 officers | 11 |
 Angola | military observation | UNOMA | 1995–2000 | 48 military observers | – |
 Tajikistan | military observation | UNMOT | 1995–2000 | 27 military observers | – |
 Bosnia and Herzegovina | peacekeeping (EUFOR Althea) | SFOR /EUFOR | 1997–present | 140 | - |
 Croatia | demining | OSCE | 1999–2001 | unknown | – |
 Ethiopia / Eritrea | peacekeeping | UNMEE | 2001–2004 | 11 military observers | – |
 Kosovo | construction / peacekeeping | UNMIK andKFOR | 2000–present | Around 300 | – |
 Republic of Macedonia | humanitarian (construction of field kitchens and a hospital) | – | 1999–2003 | ? | – |
 Afghanistan | internal security / anti-terrorist | ISAF | 2001–2021 | a total of 11,148 armed forces servicemen[54] | - |
 Liberia | peacekeeping | UNMIL | 2003–2018 | 2[55] | - |
 Iraq | Iraq War | Multi-National Force – Iraq | 2003–2008 | 485 | 13 |
 Georgia | peacekeeping | EUMM Georgia | 2008–present | 12[56] | - |
 Iraq | training mission | NATO Training Mission – Iraq | 2009–December 2011 | - | - |
 Libya | Operation Unified Protector | – | 27 April 2011 – 3 June 2011 | 160 military observers, including a group of 12 naval special commandos with the frigate Drazki | – |
 Somalia | anti-piracy | Atalanta/Ocean Shield | 2012–present | 3 | – |
On April 19, 2024, the BulgarianNational Assembly approved the ''Program for investments in defence until 2032''.[57] It is supposed to introduce new technologies in the Bulgarian Armed Forces and make up for 30 years of lack of modernization and new equipment. The program includes acquisitions of:[58]
New Armored vehicles for mechanized battalions in theLand Forces.( Already done in the form of theStryker vehicles ordered in December 2023)
NewAESA3D radars for theBulgarian Air Force.(Process almost done as of April 2024)
New coastalAnti-ship missiles for theBulgarian Navy.
Communication and Information systems for divisional headquarters of multinational divisional command.
New Medium to Long rangeSurface-to-air missiles for theBulgarian Air Force.
New air defence systems for a mechanized brigade for theBulgarian Land Forces.(SHORAD)
NewMultiple launch rocket system with increased mobility for theBulgarian Land Forces.(HIMARS)
New155 mmSelf-propelled howitzers for theBulgarian Land Forces
Unmanned combat aerial vehicles for theBulgarian Air Force
NewAttack helicopters for theBulgarian Air Force.
NewMinehunters for theBulgarian Navy.
Development of abilities to overcome dry and water obstacles.
New Multipurposecorvettes/missile boats for theBulgarian Navy
