Bulgaria's DefMin Warns Army Needs 'Hundreds of Millions'

Bulgarian Defense Minister Nikolay Nenchev has warned the country's army will need hundreds of millions of BGN for current expenses over the next few years.

Citing the mid-term budget forecast for 2016-2018, Nenchev has warned that the move to increase the minimum salary next year will require BGN 58 M (EUR 29 M) more until 2018 and BGN 150 M to boost defense capabilities under a modernization program, BGNES wire service quotes him as saying.

Another BGN 100 M have to be earmarked to pay back debts of the Military Medical Academy, a hospital which was plagued by a financial scandal earlier this year.

Nenchev has repeated several times over the last year that the army hasn't been allocated enough funding under the 2015 budget framework. His call has also been backed by President Rosen Plevneliev, who is one of the staunchest advocates of boosting defense spending in line with NATO requirements.

Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, however, is adamant that increasing military expenditures will not be possible before next year.