Country Report on Terrorism 2024 - Chapter 1 - Bulgaria

Country Overview:  While the threat of terrorism in Bulgaria remained low, foreign terrorist groups took advantage of illicit smuggling/trafficking networks to facilitate the entry of terrorists into Europe from the Middle East and South Asia.  Bulgaria continued to strengthen its counterterrorism efforts and maintained close cooperation with U.S. government agencies; however, capability gaps persisted, hindering overall effectiveness.  Most of Bulgaria’s counterterrorism efforts focused on disrupting foreign fighter transit through enhanced border security, traveler screening, and information sharing.  At year’s end, Bulgaria had not repatriated its detained nationals from northeast Syria.

Bulgaria enhanced its border security measures and continued to conduct counterterrorism activities at its borders, implementing robust migration control programs, U.S.-enabled biographic and biometric screening programs, and information-sharing with the United States and other countries to identify and apprehend terrorist suspects crossing its borders or illegally residing in Bulgaria.  The volume of illegal immigration from regions hosting terrorist networks (primarily Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq) and the number of Known and Suspected Terrorists (KSTs) identified through biographic and biometric screening held steady. Bulgarian asylum law, aligned with EU asylum regulations, limited Bulgaria’s ability to restrict the onward travel of KSTs.

Bulgaria’s counter terrorist financing efforts are consistent with previous years.  Bulgaria is a member of and active contributor to counterterrorism initiatives at the United Nations, the EU, NATO, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, and the Organization for Black Sea Economic Cooperation.

2024 Terrorism Trends:  No reported terrorist attacks were reported in Bulgaria.