Sofia has rejected Russian claims that a truck suspected of blowing up a key bridge linking the country to the Russia-occupied Crimean Peninsula traveled through Bulgarian territory.
"It has been indisputably established that the truck that blew up on the Crimean bridge was never on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria, which [Moscow has] indicated as the starting point for its route," a statement from Bulgaria's Council of Ministers said on October 11.
Russian officials have claimed that the massive explosion that damaged the crucial bridge linking Crimea and the Russian mainland was a "terrorist" act organized by Ukrainian special services and involved several countries, including Bulgaria.
The statement said "the government of the Republic of Bulgaria will in no way allow the name of our country to be associated with any involvement" in the blast.
Ukraine has not claimed responsibility for the explosion, which sent one span of the bridge's highway section tumbling into the Kerch Strait and damaged the rail section.
The blast has become a major morale boost for Ukrainian soldiers and civilians and a humiliating blow to Putin's prestige.
In retaliation, Putin unleashed a barrage of rockets and missiles across Ukraine in the past two days, killing at least 19 people and damaging cities from Lviv in the west, to Kyiv in central Ukraine, and Kharkiv in the east.
Kyiv, which has made significant military gains in Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories in recent weeks, has demanded that Russian forces leave the Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014.
