NATO planners deploy to Bulgaria to sharpen eastern defence as part of ongoing Alliance efforts to strengthen vigilance and readiness on its eastern flank. A NATO Joint Planning Team has arrived in Sofia to support Bulgaria’s role in Operation Eastern Sentry and improve command, control and information sharing with national defence assets.
A NATO Joint Planning Team arrived in Sofia, Bulgaria, in early February 2026 to refine the country’s contribution to Eastern Sentry, a key Alliance activity aimed at strengthening situational awareness and defensive posture along NATO’s eastern border.
The planning team includes personnel from Allied Air Command (AIRCOM), Joint Force Command Naples and the Combined Air Operations Centre (CAOC) Torrejón. They are working closely with the Bulgarian Air Force to develop national elements of the enhanced vigilance activity and improve interoperability with broader NATO operations.
According to NATO statements, the planning mission focuses on improving command-and-control integration, operational planning and information-sharing processes. These efforts are designed to make air and space operations more cohesive and responsive to potential airspace incursions or other security challenges on NATO’s eastern flank.
Brigadier General Kevin M. Jamieson, Deputy Chief of Staff Operations at Allied Air Command, said the deployment highlights NATO’s integrated approach to air and space defence. Working side-by-side with Bulgarian units, planners aim to ensure national contributions align fully with Alliance objectives.
NATO Eastern Flank Context
The deployment in Sofia is part of broader NATO efforts to reinforce deterrence and defence along the eastern flank of the Alliance. Since Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, NATO has increased its presence in Eastern Europe through multinational battlegroups, air policing missions, and enhanced vigilance activities such as Eastern Sentry.
Eastern Sentry was launched in September 2025 in response to a spike in Russian drone and aircraft airspace violations across multiple NATO member states. The operation aims to coordinate additional assets across air, land and maritime domains to strengthen collective situational awareness and defence.
Bulgaria hosts a NATO multinational battlegroup under the Forward Land Forces concept, with Italy as the framework nation and contributions from Albania, Croatia, Greece, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Turkey and the United States. These formations are part of a wider network of battlegroups across Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
Operational Goals
The planning mission in Bulgaria aims to support several key NATO goals:
• Improve interoperability between Bulgarian national defence systems and NATO air defence assets.
• Strengthen command, control and information-sharing frameworks among participating NATO commands.
• Enhance responsiveness to potential airspace incursions and other threats in the eastern region.
• Align Bulgaria’s contributions with broader NATO strategies under Eastern Sentry and other vigilance activities.
Bulgaria’s Strategic Role
Bulgaria has increased its strategic defence profile within the Alliance, investing in infrastructure and capability enhancement to support rapid NATO deployments. The country is planning logistics and housing infrastructure capable of accommodating thousands of NATO personnel and improved transit routes for allied forces.
Senior NATO officials have repeatedly highlighted Bulgaria’s importance for security in the Black Sea region and beyond. Visits by NATO leadership and high-level engagements in Sofia underscore the ongoing cooperation to strengthen defence readiness and alliance cohesion.
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