Washington, DC. Aug. 24 – Two United States Air Force KC-135 tanker aircraft have officially departed from Bulgaria’s Bezmer air base, marking the conclusion of a controversial deployment that lasted nearly a month and strongly provoked diplomatic tensions with Iran. The temporary positioning of these military assets was requested by Washington under an established bilateral agreement governing the joint operational use of regional military facilities.
The arrival of the American aircraft had immediately triggered fierce reactions from Tehran, which strongly condemned the strategic positioning. Iranian officials asserted that hosting the military hardware amounted to direct complicity in acts of aggression and war crimes. However, the government in Sofia firmly rejected these accusations, maintaining that its cooperative defense posture remained entirely lawful and aligned with allied commitments.
Beyond international friction, the deployment also sparked localized unease within the Balkan nation. Nearby residents organized public demonstrations near the air base, voicing deep anxieties that the presence of the American planes could make local communities vulnerable targets for retaliatory missile and drone strikes.
Addressing these domestic security concerns, Bulgarian Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov reassured the public by clarifying that every flight executed during the deployment was strictly limited to routine training missions over allied territories. Stoyanov emphasized that authorities detected no direct threats to national security, confirming full coordination with Washington.