Russian links, Western veterans and a Bulgarian training camp raise security questions

A leaked Australian intelligence assessment has raised questions over alleged Russian military links to a private training centre in Bulgaria, where Western special forces veterans were reportedly recruited to train Russian nationals, according to The Telegraph.

One of the centres mentioned in the ASIS document is located near the mountain village of Mezhdeni, close to Gabrovo in central Bulgaria.

The document, reported by the British newspaper The Telegraph, assesses with “high confidence” that Western military veterans were recruited to train Russian nationals, including serving military personnel.

The information is based, among other things, on interviews with two former Australian special forces personnel and one serving reservist, who said they had been offered positions as instructors at training centres in Bulgaria and Serbia.

Bulgaria has for years had a reputation as one of the most vulnerable links to Russian hybrid threats in the EU and NATO, while Serbia is one of the Kremlin’s closest allies in Europe, despite being an EU candidate country.

The Telegraph points out that it was unable to independently verify the contents of the intelligence memo. The Bulgarian company named in the document has categorically denied training Russian nationals since the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine or employing veterans of Britain’s special forces, as alleged by the intelligence assessment.

The Bulgarian link

At the centre of the story is the training complex near the mountain village of Mezhdeni operated by Alfa-Meta, a Bulgarian private training centre specialising in advanced tactical training for special forces, snipers, drone operators and security personnel.

According to the intelligence assessment, the centre has or has had instructors with professional experience in Britain’s SAS, Australia’s Commando Regiment, U.S. police forces and the U.S. Navy SEALs.

The company offers specialised and advanced courses, including sniper training, for potential private military contractors, bodyguards and corporate security personnel.

The document claims that private training centres in Europe continued to accept Russian nationals after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. According to information cited by The Telegraph, Russian nationals underwent such training in Bulgaria as recently as 2025, including close-quarters combat courses.

The Alfa-Metal website has also carried material referring to the SAS, while around six months ago the company published an advertisement for an instructor with experience in the British special forces, The Telegraph reported. This, however, does not in itself prove that a former SAS member actually worked at the centre.

The Russian links

The intelligence document also draws attention to alleged links between “Alfa-Metal” and the St Petersburg-based security company “Alfa Region”.

The Russian company advertises the Bulgarian training centre and says that its courses involve instructors with experience in the special forces and police services of Bulgaria, the U.S., Russia, Greece, Israel and Ukraine. “Alfa Region” is linked to Russia’s association of veterans of the “Alfa” counter-terrorism unit and supports the operational special forces centre of the Federal Security Service (FSB), according to information cited by the British newspaper.

“Alfa-Metal” initially denied having any links to the Russian company. After The Telegraph pointed to archived material on its website referring to a “partnership agreement”, the Bulgarian firm acknowledged that the two companies had had “historical professional contacts”, but described the material as outdated marketing content.

Alfa-Metal denies the allegations

Speaking to Bulgarian National Radio (BNR), company representative Veneta Arabova also rejected claims that Russian military personnel were being trained at the centre near Mezhdeni.

According to her, “Alfa-Metal” is an international specialist training centre that has operated since 2008 on the site of a former military airfield. Training is provided both to civilians and specialised organisations, with clients coming from countries around the world.

Arabova said the company had worked with Russian nationals until 2020, but had not had Russian clients or Russian companies with which it worked since the start of the pandemic, “let alone after 2022”.

London and Canberra face a sensitive issue

The case could have potentially serious consequences, as British legislation now allows former military personnel to be prosecuted for training foreign armies and sharing protected military information.

The UK Ministry of Defence introduced these powers following revelations that former British military pilots had trained Chinese military personnel. The National Security Act 2023 criminalises certain forms of providing protected information and military tactics to foreign forces.

The British Ministry of Defence declined to comment on specific questions related to the special forces or intelligence, but said existing legislation gives intelligence agencies and police powers to counter hostile activity by foreign states.

Pressure for an investigation in Bulgaria

The information has already triggered a political reaction in Sofia. Democratic Bulgaria has called for the heads of the State Intelligence Agency (SIA) and the State Agency for National Security (SANS) to be questioned in parliament to establish whether Bulgarian intelligence services had information about the alleged training of Russian nationals and whether participants in the courses had undergone security checks.

DB co-leader Ivaylo Mirchev described the case as evidence of a serious security problem for Bulgaria as NATO’s eastern flank and questioned how Russian military personnel could potentially be trained on the territory of an EU and NATO member state.

The Bulgarian government did not respond to EUalive’s questions on the matter.

The article in Bulgarian by EUalive.bg can be found here.

Sources: The Telegraph, Bulgarian National Radio (BNR)

Caption: Illustrative image from the Alpha Metal website.