Syria is in the list of countries that Bulgaria is not allowed to export weapons to according to the Bulgarian legislation.

At end October 2012 the Council of Ministers passed amendments to the law and provided a detailed list of countries that have been sanctioned through the weapon embargo. They are 14 in total, with Sudan, South Sudan, Libya, Belarus, Somalia, Lebanon, Liberia, C?te d'ivoire, Iran, Iraq and Congo being among them.

The ban on weapon trade with Syria has originally been imposed by the EU as a form of agreement with UN Security Council’s resolution dating back to December 2011. The grounds for the decision are the fact that the weaponry could then be used for internal repressions within those countries.

Meanwhile, the US Embassy in Sofia has said the three US contractors hit by last week’s explosion at a firing range in Bulgaria are employees of a firm hired to work on programme to support moderate opposition forces in Syria, Reuters reported Thursday.

‘’When it comes to Syria, I do think that there are Bulgarian companies that are executing active military trade, and some US ones are using them as intermediaries,’’ said former Chief of Bulgarian Intelligence Service Gen. Kircho Kirov. ‘’It is well known that the US Defense Ministry prefers to work with private companies so as to avoid the spotlight when it comes to structures they in fact support – for example, the rebels against the Assad regime.’’

He, however, noted that there is no law violation in this case, as it is a private business matter. Kirov noted that there is no guarantee that the weapons sold will not fall into the hands of terrorists.