“Bulgaria has no place in a coalition against the Islamic State (IS),” said General Brigo Asparuhov, former director of Bulgaria’s National Intelligence Service (NIS), speaking Monday for Radio FOCUS.

According to him, Bulgaria should not join a possible ground operation in the Middle East but concentrate its efforts on protecting its own territory.

If a “coalition of the willing” is formed against the IS, Bulgaria could provide logistic support, Asparuhov believes.

“We are a NATO country but do not have military aviation, tanks; our army is not in a good state. Bulgaria should keep cool at such a time and weigh up its means, including the financial ones,” Brigo Asparuhov noted.

According to him, Bulgaria is not sufficiently prepared to protect its own territory.