"The decision of the Minister of Defense Atanas Zapryanov regarding the American military planes was taken on the note of the allies and has no bearing on the work of the caretaker government". This was stated by the caretaker Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov during a blitz control in the National Assembly, quoted by news.bg.
He explained that on February 18, the planes were stationed at "Vasil Levski" airport - one day before the caretaker government took office.
For Gyurov, it is important to ensure the peace of citizens, while the caretaker government fulfills its obligations to NATO. "Bulgaria is not a party to the conflict with Iran and does not participate in the actions of Israel and the US towards Iran. What I can confirm is that no actions related to these actions of the US and Israel are being taken on the territory of our country. There is no change whatsoever regarding the stated note for the presence of our allies on our territory and this does not imply a decision in the National Assembly to expel the American military aircraft", the caretaker prime minister emphasized.
He confirmed that he had requested information from the Minister of Defense to analyze whether these aircraft could be moved from the civilian airport, providing them with the necessary logistical support.
Gurov lashed out at "Vazrazhdane" for trying to create panic among citizens for the purpose of political propaganda. "The caretaker government will not allow this. Our goal is to provide peace of mind and to provide facts that are not used for suggestions," the prime minister added.
He also answered a question from the parliamentary group of the DPS-New Beginning about the distressed Bulgarian citizens in the Middle East.
He explained that the airspace for the UAE is now open and civil flights can be operated from there. He has instructed all tour operators to organize the evacuation of their clients in the fastest and most efficient way.
Bulgarian citizens have been evacuated from Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, as well as from Israel, Kuwait, Baghdad. 130 Bulgarian tourists have been evacuated from Jordan. 20 Bulgarians have been evacuated from Iraq. "At the moment, there are no Bulgarian citizens to be evacuated from Iraq," assured Andrey Gyurov.