advertisement
Sat, Feb 11 2012
US embassy sheds light on joint military bases in Bulgaria
Photo: Stoyan Nenov
The Unites States embassy in Sofia issued a statement on October 20 to clarify any uncertainty arising from a Stars and Stripes publication on October 19 2009, regarding the future of joint Bulgarian and US training military facilities in the country.
"To set the record straight, all the joint-use facilities are Bulgarian bases. Novo Selo, as with all the joint-use facilities in Bulgaria, are where US military units can train with their Bulgarian counterparts at a facility that will offer opportunities to practise interoperability and skills necessary to work together in a joint environment."
The embassy statement does not read too differently from the original Stars and Stripes article, however, which essentially says the same thing:
"The bases are to be built with American funds but will be owned by the Bulgarian and Romanian governments and will be shared between US and host-nation forces."
According to the media statement, "this facility is a result of the Defence Co-operation Agreement signed by both the Government of Bulgaria and the United States which stipulates that these facilities will be used for training".
The embassy statement does differentiate clearly on one particular matter however. On October 19, the Stars and Stripes reported that "the Pentagon is contemplating building a $60 million facility in Bulgaria to accommodate 2500 US troops and another in Romania, estimated to cost about 50 million for 1600 US personnel".
The article does not imply that the troops will be positioned there permanently, rather it was referring to the facility's capacity. Apparently the controversy was such that the embassy felt compelled to clarify that there would be "no permanent troop deployment".
"The US forces who temporarily deploy to Bulgaria to participate in this training return to their home bases once the training is complete. As such, there are no permanent US forces deployed to facilities such as Novo Selo, and the US plans to keep operating in this manner."
"To set the record straight, all the joint-use facilities are Bulgarian bases. Novo Selo, as with all the joint-use facilities in Bulgaria, are where US military units can train with their Bulgarian counterparts at a facility that will offer opportunities to practise interoperability and skills necessary to work together in a joint environment."
The embassy statement does not read too differently from the original Stars and Stripes article, however, which essentially says the same thing:
"The bases are to be built with American funds but will be owned by the Bulgarian and Romanian governments and will be shared between US and host-nation forces."
According to the media statement, "this facility is a result of the Defence Co-operation Agreement signed by both the Government of Bulgaria and the United States which stipulates that these facilities will be used for training".
The embassy statement does differentiate clearly on one particular matter however. On October 19, the Stars and Stripes reported that "the Pentagon is contemplating building a $60 million facility in Bulgaria to accommodate 2500 US troops and another in Romania, estimated to cost about 50 million for 1600 US personnel".
The article does not imply that the troops will be positioned there permanently, rather it was referring to the facility's capacity. Apparently the controversy was such that the embassy felt compelled to clarify that there would be "no permanent troop deployment".
"The US forces who temporarily deploy to Bulgaria to participate in this training return to their home bases once the training is complete. As such, there are no permanent US forces deployed to facilities such as Novo Selo, and the US plans to keep operating in this manner."
-
Print
-
Send via email
- Translate to
-
Share:
Comments
To post comments, please, Login or Register.
Please read the The Sofia Echo forum comments policy.
US to build $60M military base in Bulgaria - report
Two bases, one in Bulgaria and a smaller one in Romania, are planned by the Pentagon, a month after the Obama administration shelved plans to build a missile defence system in Poland and the Czech Republic
Borissov attends military training in Novo Selo
Boiko Borissov criticises former government's lavish spending programmes during a visit to Novo Selo with US acting ambassador John M. Ordway and Brigadier General Carter Ham
Novo Selo: 'hearts and minds' - but locals want jobs
Some locals are saying that what the Americans have promised, and what they have actually accomplished are two very different matters altogether.
More in this category
Auction reveals Ceausescu’s personal age of plenty
Iranian silver-plated pigeons, African leopard skins and a Chinese bronze yak were among the 70 items sold in an auction of gifts presented to Romania’s former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife Elena.
EC praises airports for progress in dealing with extreme weather
Airports were also showing signs of better co-ordination and providing passengers with accurate real-time information, compared to previous period of travel disruption, transport commissioner Siim Kallas said.
Hungary's PM condemns international critics amid economic uncertainty
Viktor Orban defends government's record, new constitution in state-of-the-nation address as he slams European Commission.
Polish PM, digitalisation minister hold public debates on ACTA ratification
PM Donald Tusk invited authors, NGOs, experts and bloggers to a debate on the ACTA copyright agreement, but several key organisations, including the Helsinki Foundation, rejected the invitation claiming that the talks will likely offer no opportunity to discuss concrete issues.
Protesters clash in Budapest as controversial theatre director takes stage
'Dirty Jews' and 'Dirty Nazis' were the most popular chants when two groups clashed in front of Új Színház (New Theatre)
© 2000-2012, Sofia Echo Media Ltd.
Web Design by RIZN
Sofia Echo Media is part of the Economedia Group.
The news and information content on this website is provided by our editorial team and is copyrighted.
Any unauthorised reproduction or use of it is strictly forbidden. Reproduction of this website's content is permitted only
with prior written permission from the Editor-in-Chief, should be propertly acredited and provide an active link back to our site.
Comments posted by the website's visitors are independent of the editorial materials and do not represent the views of sofiaecho.com.
Sofia Echo Media cannot be held responsible for the statements contained in visitor comments.
The percentаge change in the shares' prices are based on the price of the last transaction of the current session compared to the
price of the last transaction of the previous session. Bulgarian Stock Exchange data is not real-time, but updated every 15 minutes,
and should not be used as a basis for decisions about buying or selling stock options.
- Economedia Group portfolio:
- In Bulgarian:
-
Business:
Капитал,
Кариери,
Пазари,
Ho Re Mag,
Регал,
Градът.bg,
Одит,
Foton.bg,
Online shop
- News: Дневник, Европа, Foreign Policy - България
- IT: IDG.BG, Computerworld, PC World, CIO, Networkworld
- Entertainment: Бакхус
-
In English:
The Sofia Echo
"I would love to get a U.S. contractor job at one of these military bases. That would be a sweet assignment."
So would the Chinese ... love you to get a job there...
You see, they are the ones lending the money for the US to build military crap around the world.
With few export wordy commercial goods build in the US, there is no money to make war toys, unless of course you borrow them from from those who actually build stuff.
Your statement reminds me [...]
Read the full comment of a Bulgarian pensioner reminiscing about the great days when the government manufactured stuff and he didn't have to worry... the problem is that that kind of "security" is a one way ticked to the economic cliff, and the US is en route to jump off it....
"I would love to get a U.S. contractor job at one of these military bases. That would be a sweet assignment."
So would the Chinese ... love you to get a job there...
You see, they are the ones lending the money for the US to build military crap around the world.
With few export wordy commercial goods build in the US, there is no money to make war toys, unless of course you borrow them from from those who actually build stuff.
Your statement reminds me [...]
Read the full comment of a Bulgarian pensioner reminiscing about the great days when the government manufactured stuff and he didn't have to worry... the problem is that that kind of "security" is a one way ticked to the economic cliff, and the US is en route to jump off it....
The US specializes in military equipment and services because they have an absolute advantage in these fields over most other countries, so they quite rightly do it.
I worked in the U.S. defense industry for 15 years and the jobs are very well paid. I would love to get a U.S. contractor job at one of these military bases. That would be a sweet assignment.
"Last time I checked there were plenty of Fords in Bulgaria"
US built?
I don't think so. Here and there.
The ones designed/built in the US are too ugly for BG market. What can I say - we are vain;)
A small country like South Korea has much larger presence in BG that the US, and of course the Germans own the upscale market, as they should...
"How about the US build ONE automobile that a self-respecting Bulgarian can buy? One!"
Last time I checked there were plenty of Fords in Bulgaria
With the death toll on the Bulgarian roads from the bad drivers there, maybe driving the military vehicles would be a better choise.
I have an idea!
How about the US build ONE automobile that a self-respecting Bulgarian can buy?
One!
All we see from them is military, military....