Iran also threatened Bulgaria, two days after Romania. The specifications of the Sofia government
Iranian authorities warned Bulgaria last month not to allow the United States to use its airports for planes participating in military operations in Iran, Sofia's foreign ministry said on Wednesday, as quoted by Reuters.
The ministry's comment came after earlier on Wednesday MP Stanislav Balabanov of the There Is Such a People party presented a March 18 memo in which the Iranian government protested the presence of US military refueling planes at Sofia's Vasil Levski Airport.
Iran threatened in the note that it “reserves the right to take all necessary measures to protect its sovereignty, security and national interests in accordance with international law.”
Deputy Foreign Minister Marin Raikov later on Wednesday confirmed the authenticity of the diplomatic note but stressed that “Bulgaria is not at war”.
“No combat aircraft are loaded onto Bulgarian territory to participate in military operations,” he told reporters. “We keep diplomatic relations with the Iranian side intact,” he added.
In late February, Bulgarian media reported that several US military aircraft had landed at Sofia's Vasil Levski Airport, a civilian airport, and authorities said they were part of NATO's forward deployment, which Raikov confirmed on Wednesday.
“Our parliament has not approved decisions to support relevant military actions in the Strait of Hormuz region,” he said.
Iran's warning to Romania
The disclosure initially made by the Bulgarian deputy shows that the neighboring country was threatened by Iran two days after Romania.
On March 16, Tehran warned that it would react politically and legally after Romania gave the green light to the United States for the use of military bases in operations against Iran.
“If Romania makes its bases available to the United States, this would be equivalent to participating in a military aggression against Iran,” Esmaeil Baghaei, the spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tehran, said at the time at a weekly press conference.
He stated that such a move would be unacceptable under international law and would entail the international responsibility of our country.
Iran has repeatedly warned states that host US bases that any logistical or military support to Washington would be considered an act of hostility. Tehran claims that the presence of foreign forces in the region and the expansion of the US military infrastructure in Eastern Europe represent a direct threat to its national security.
However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bucharest emphasized, as a reaction to Tehran's March 16 message, that Romania is not involved in the war in the Middle East and that the bilateral access agreement from 2006 provides the USA with the guaranteed legal framework to use military bases in Romania on an ongoing basis.
In a March 11 CSAT meeting, Romania approved Washington's request to temporarily deploy refueling aircraft, equipment and troops to Romania to support operations in the Middle East. Later, the request was also approved by the Romanian Parliament, providing the legal framework for the increased American military presence at the Mihail Kogălniceanu base.
President Nicușor Dan emphasized for his part that these equipments are strictly defensive and will be deployed based on the strategic partnership and that “there are no reasons for concern” regarding security threats from Iran.
