Defence Ministry: Bulgarian Defender 25 exercises to be held from May 26 to June 9

Sofia: The Bulgarian Armed Forces will participate in a series of multinational military exercises to improve operational capabilities at the national and alliance levels, united under the name “Bulgarian Defender – 25”, the Defence Ministry said on May 23.

The exercises will be held from May 26 to June 9 on the territory of Bulgaria and allied countries, the ministry said.

The exercises are being held as part of the largest exercise of this year, “Defender – 25”, led by the US Army Command in Europe and Africa. Similar exercises have already been held in 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023 and are aimed at improving the joint training of military formations from Nato member states and partner countries and increasing the interoperability of the armed forces in the collective defence system.

“Defender – 25” includes several related exercises: “Swift Response 25”, “Immediate Response 25” and “Saber Guardian 25”, which are conducted in the Baltic, Balkan, Black Sea and Mediterranean regions.

“Bulgarian Defender – 25” is conducted under the general framework of the “Immediate Response 25” exercise. The officer conducting the exercise is the Commander of the Joint Forces Command, Major General Stanimir Hristov.

Under the leadership of the Joint Forces Command in the area of ​​the Charalitsa National Military Training Complex, a national structure for command and control of the exercises with Bulgarian participation will be deployed, which will carry out the interaction with the Joint Control Group of “Defender – 25” in the city of Wiesbaden, Germany.

The interaction between the headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Bulgaria will be ensured by Bulgarian officers for liaison with the “Defender – 25” command and control group, located in Wiesbaden, Germany; at the headquarters of the 28th Infantry Division in the area of ​​the Gjakova Air Base, Republic of Kosovo; at the headquarters of the 645th Multinational Mechanized Battalion and the 20th Greek Armored Brigade in the area of ​​the Petrochori Training Area, Republic of Greece, as well as in the structure for planning and conducting the military police support and the debriefing and analysis group of the “Immediate Response 25” exercise.

“Bulgarian Defender – 25” includes the following exercises with real actions on the ground:

Command and staff exercise of the 31st Nuclear Chemical and Biological Protection and Ecology Brigade (NCB&E) from the Alabama National Guard, which will be held from May 27 to June 9 2025 at the Charalitsa complex. During the exercise, tasks for actions in a complicated NCB environment will be practiced. On the Bulgarian side, a nuclear weapons and chemical warfare cell from military formation 52210-Bankya and a nuclear weapons and chemical warfare cell from the Land Forces will be deployed at the brigade headquarters.

A tactical-special exercise with the participation of a convoy support center and a support company from the Logistics Support Command, which will be held from May 27 to May 30 2025 in the area of ​​the Todorovo machine yard near Pleven.

Command and staff exercise “Balkan wall – 25” with the participation of the headquarters of the 61st mechanized brigade of the Land Forces, which will be held from May 27 to June 6 2025 at the Koren and Novo Selo training grounds. The headquarters of the Nato multinational battle group in Bulgaria, teachers and students from the GS Rakovski Military Academy and a group for providing communication and information support (KIP) from military formation 28860 – Gorna Malina from the Joint Forces Command will participate in the exercise.

International tactical exercise for practicing tasks related to overcoming a water barrier, which will be held from May 25 to June 7 2025 at the Petrochori training ground, Greece. The exercise will involve a mechanized company from the 61st Mechanized Brigade and a Military Police platoon with regular weapons, combat equipment, equipment and supplies.

Tactical live fire exercise “Balkan Sentinel-25”, which will be held from May 27 to June 9 2025 at the Koren training ground under the leadership of the Land Forces Command. The exercise will involve forces and assets from the Land Forces, the Air Force, a maneuver company from the rotational contingent of the US Armed Forces (RAF) at the Novo Selo training ground (NSTA FOS), formations from the Nato Multinational Battle Group in Bulgaria (MNBG ITA FN) and a mechanized infantry platoon from the Romanian Armed Forces.

The series of related international exercises “Bulgarian Defender – 25” are included in the Plan for the Training of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Bulgaria in 2025, the Nato Exercise Plan and the Plan for Joint Bulgarian-American Training in the Country and Abroad in 2025.