Radev: without visa waivers for Bulgarians, there will be no long stay for American tankers

The government of "Rumen Radev" will allow American tanker aircraft to remain on Bulgarian territory for only one more month, as the United States has not yet responded positively to Sofia's request for visa waivers for Bulgarian citizens.

"At the last Council of Ministers meeting, I announced that during my conversation with the US President, I had submitted a request for the abolition of visas for Bulgarian citizens. So far, I have not received a positive response, and I fully understand the complexity of regulatory procedures and the need for time, but we also have our own priorities and procedures, and we cannot respond positively to the request for a prolonged stay of the tanker aircraft at Sofia Airport," stated Prime Minister "Rumen Radev".

He clarified that the Council of Ministers is extending the stay of the American aircraft only until the end of June. The previous authorization was for the period from February 17 to May 31.

"In order to give our allies the opportunity to reschedule their actions and find another location," added the Prime Minister.

Earlier this month, Radev set a condition for the US – to lift visas for Bulgarian citizens if they want the US Air Force tanker aircraft to continue using "Vasil Levski" airport.

As expected, there has been no reaction from the American side so far, and "Radev"'s ultimatum seems to be aimed primarily at the domestic audience and the country's political scene.