TEHRAN: The United Kingdom, Bulgaria and Ukraine have assured Iran that they will not participate in any new US war against Iran, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said.
Baghaei told Iranian state television that Tehran received several calls from the three countries during the previous 24 hours, according to a report published on August 3.
However, the three governments had not publicly confirmed the specific calls or assurances described by Baghaei. British and Bulgarian officials had previously ruled out joining offensive operations against Iran.
The British government said on March 1 that it had permitted the United States to use British bases for a “specific and limited defensive purpose.”
It said Britain would support regional defensive operations but would not join offensive strikes against Iran, according to an official government statement.
Meanwhile, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova-Chamova told Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on July 30.
Read: Iran Warns Arab States Against Aiding US-Israel Strikes
That Sofia had no intention of participating in the war, Iran’s state-run IRNA reported. Bulgaria has authorised up to eight US KC-135 refuelling aircraft and 250 personnel at Bezmer Air Base.
Bulgarian officials said the aircraft would conduct logistical missions outside the country’s airspace and that no attacks would originate from Bulgarian territory.
Read: Iran Urges Bulgaria to Reverse US Tanker Deployment
Tensions with Ukraine increased after its Security Service said drones struck two sanctioned cargo vessels and an oil platform in the Caspian Sea on July 25.
Kyiv alleged that the ships transported military cargo between Iran and Russia, according to Interfax-Ukraine.
