A majority of Bulgarian lawmakers on Thursday approved sending the country’s first military aid to Ukraine.
The National Assembly voted 175-49 with one abstention in favor of a proposal presented by four nominally pro-EU parties.
The government now has a month to decide what kind of weapons Bulgaria can provide without affecting its defense capabilities.
Bulgaria previously agreed to repair Ukrainian military equipment at its factories, but refused to send weapons directly because of opposition from President Rumen Radev and the country’s Moscow-friendly political parties.
Along with Hungary, Bulgaria was the only EU member state that had refused to provide arms to Ukraine as it fought against Russia.
“More guns mean more war,” said Bulgarian Socialist Party chairwoman Kornelia Ninova, explaining why her party’s lawmakers voted against the proposal.
The heated debate that preceded the vote reflected the divisions in Bulgaria since Russia began aggression against its neighbor.
Although the country belongs to both NATO and the EU, many Bulgarians have strong sympathy for Russia, rooted in history, culture and religion.
President Radev, a former army general, has been accused of maintaining close ties to Moscow and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.
Radev rejected the accusations, asserting that he condemned the Russian aggression “from the first day of this war”.
Bulgaria also relies heavily on Russian energy supplies, which has been another point of contention between pro-Russian and pro-EU political parties in Bulgaria.
The pro-Russian nationalist party Vazrazhdane called on its supporters to gather outside the parliament building to protest against military aid to Ukraine, saying the aid “pushes the country into war”.
