Bulgaria allows a Russian plane to fly over its territory

An Il-76TD aircraft of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation passed through Bulgarian airspace last night and landed in the Serbian city of Niš. Machines of this type can be used for various tasks, including firefighting operations, BGNES reports.

Nova TV quotes the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to which the flight was carried out with a humanitarian nature after a request with a note from Serbia due to the fires in the country.

MP Hristo Gadzhev, a member of the parliamentary Defense Committee, commented on the flight on Facebook: “A Russian government plane flew over Bulgaria in the direction of Serbia. The likely destination is the Russian-Serbian center in Nis, which for years has been considered the headquarters of the Russian intelligence community in the Balkans. This is in violation of EU sanctions. Russian planes are prohibited from flying over, taking off or landing on EU territory. Unless, of course, the Minister of Foreign Affairs in Sofia has given explicit permission. It is very interesting for what reasons.”

“At a time when forest fires in Serbia continue to spread near the Bulgarian border and threaten cross-border areas, international cooperation to control the disaster is gaining particular importance,” the statement of the Foreign Ministry reads, which makes it clear that Bulgarian institutions have issued the necessary permits.

After the capital and several other Bulgarian cities were engulfed in smoke, Bulgaria offered assistance to Serbia to extinguish the fire.

Air quality in Bulgaria returns to normal levels after fire in Serbia

Editor: Diana Tsankova