Spain said on Saturday it would send 14 fighter jets to Bulgaria and Romania to bolster NATO’s eastern flank as the defense alliance bolsters its deterrence capacity following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Madrid will send six Eurofighter jets and 130 soldiers to Bulgaria from mid-November to early December to train local forces, the Spanish defense ministry said in a statement.
The ministry added that a further deployment would see eight F18M fighter jets and 130 air force personnel sent to Romania between December and March next year as part of NATO’s “reaction and deterrence” strategy.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin thanked Spain for its “very, very quick response” to Ukraine’s latest request for more air defense.