Bulgaria will no longer provide weapons to Ukraine, Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said on June 9, signalling a shift in policy under the country’s new government.

“The war in Ukraine will not be resolved on the battlefield,” Stoyanov told a news conference, adding that continued arms supplies would only lead to further loss of life.

Stoyanov called for renewed diplomatic efforts, saying “it is time to sit down at the negotiating table” and seek a “just peace”. He added that the European Union had an important role to play, although its support for Kyiv could complicate any mediation role.

The announcement comes after the election of a new government in April led by Prime Minister Rumen Radev, a former president who has previously opposed military aid to Ukraine and advocated a diplomatic solution to the conflict.

Radev, one of Bulgaria’s most prominent political figures, secured a parliamentary majority in the country’s eighth election since 2021, enabling him to form a single-party government — the first such outcome since 1997.

He has repeatedly questioned Western weapons deliveries to Ukraine and warned against long-term security commitments to Kyiv. Speaking on May 18 after meeting German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Radev said it was “high time for diplomacy” as the prolonged war was “exhausting all parties involved”.

Bulgaria has exported weapons to Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to data from the United Nations Register of Conventional Arms.

Stoyanov also said the government plans to increase defence spending to 5% of gross domestic product by 2030, including 3.5% for direct military expenditure and 1.5% for related areas such as infrastructure and cybersecurity. He added that projects to modernise the Bulgarian armed forces would be accelerated.

The policy shift will put Sofia at odds with its European allies, which have continued to supply Kyiv with military assistance as the war with Russia drags into its fourth year.