site.btaPresident Radev: "It Is Unacceptable to Have Bulgarians' Life Put at Risk by Military Units"

Sofia, May 31 (BTA) - President Rumen Radev Monday commented on
an incident which took place on May 11 when US troops
participating in a military exercise burst into the premises of
a private company adjoining an airfield at Cheshnegirovo (South
Central Bulgaria). "It is absolutely unacceptable to have the
life and calm of Bulgarian citizens put at risk by military
units, be they part of the Bulgarian or foreign armed forces,"
he said.

Radev met with Defence Minister Georgi Panayotov and Lieutenant
General Lyubcho Todorov, Commander of the Joint Forces Command,
the President's Press Secretariat said.

Radev expects a thorough probe to identify the officials
responsible for the incident. He also urged for a review of the
organization and safety measures taken during military
exercises. "Exercises in Bulgarian territory involving our
Allies should boost the sense of security and trust in
collective defence, instead of causing tension among
Bulgarians," he said.

Defence Minister Panayotov reported the incident to the
President and said he had met with the owner of the business
near Plovdiv. Further meetings will be held with the US side to
ensure full clarification of the incident and prevention of such
 "extremely unpleasant and disconcerting misunderstandings".

On May 28, Nova Television reported that on May 11, US troops
had burst into a factory making equipment for sunflower oil
refineries, located in Plovdiv Region. Security camera footage
showed seven uniformed servicepersons carrying assault rifles.
The factory is in the immediate proximity of Cheshnegirovo Air
Base where a large-scale exercise was taking place.

The Defence Minister said at a briefing on May 29 that what
happened during the military exercise was an incident and an
obvious misunderstanding.

The incident was not made public earlier because it had not been
 reported, said Panayotov.

The US Embassy said in a statement received by BTA on Saturday
that "as part of Exercise Swift Response 21, U.S. soldiers
assigned to the 173rd Airborne Brigade conducted a training
exercise to simulate seizing and securing the Cheshnegirovo
decommissioned airfield in Bulgaria. During the course of this
exercise, soldiers simulated entering and clearing multiple
bunkers and structures across the airfield. On May 11, soldiers
entered and cleared a building next to the airfield that they
believed was part of the training area, but that was occupied by
 Bulgarian civilians operating a private business. No weapons
were fired at any time during this interaction."

The US Embassy offered sincere apologies to the business and its
 employees. "We always learn from these exercises and are fully
investigating the cause of this mistake. We will implement
rigorous procedures to clearly define our training areas and
prevent this type of incident in the future," the Embassy said.
RY/DD