Bulgaria arrests 12 people for violating EU sanctions on exports to Russia

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgarian police have arrested 12 people accused of illegally exporting dual-use goods to Russia that can be used by military personnel in the war in Ukraine. The Interior Ministry chief secretary, Zhivko Kotsev, says the suspects include citizens of Bulgaria, Russia and Belarus. The head of the State Agency for National Security,  Plamen Tonchev, says the shipments were not intended for the regular Russian army, but for special forces fighting in Ukraine, such as the Wagner Group and the Akhmat paramilitary unit. He says the criminal export ring has been operating in other EU member states, as well as in the U.K., Serbia, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates.