Novo Selo Training Area, Bulgaria. (May 12, 2025): Situated on the Black Sea, the tiny country of Bulgaria plays an outsized role in defending NATO’s eastern flank. In this photo by Specialist Nathan Arellano Tlaczani, Specialist Samuel Roberts heads to cover after planting a charge during a live fire exercise at this sprawling military base. The U.S. Army and the Bulgarian military maintain a strong military-to-military relationship, characterized by joint exercises, training rotations, and the sharing of military facilities. 

In April 2006, joint Bulgarian–American Military Facilities were established for tank gunnery, reconnaissance, nuclear, biological, and chemical defense training. As part of the agreement, U.S. Army units conduct numerous joint maneuvers with the Bulgarian Armed Forces including urban assault courses and military police exercises. 

These units rotate regularly through the Novo Selo Training Area for short-term training involving infantry battalions that can include up to 550 soldiers at a time. These events are financed through security assistance programs, including Foreign Military Financing and International Military Education and Training grants.

The Army personnel also engaged in community relations activities, such as language and cultural exchanges with Bulgarian schools, fostering positive relationships with local communities.