State Agency Technical Operations (SATO) was established on 9 August 2013 by adoption of the Act, amending and supplementing the Special Intelligence Means Act. The Agency is a specialized body with the Council of Ministers for procurement and implementation of special intelligence means, as the legal successor of the Specialized Technical Operations Directorate of the Ministry of Interior.
Chairmen of SATO
Tsvetan Kitov
(2013-2021)
Tsvetan Kitov was born on 01 February 1964 in Sofia. He graduated and obtained a Master's degree from the Higher Institute for Training of Officers and Research for the Needs of the Ministry of the Interior (VIPOND, now the Academy of the Ministry of Interior). In 1998 he graduated from the Technical University in Sofia and obtained a Master's degree.
At the beginning of his career he worked successively in the Sofia Fire Protection Directorate, in the Directorate of Operational Technical Information, and in the General Directorate of the National Security Service at the Ministry of Interior. In 2008, he joined the State Agency for National Security (SANS), where he was Director of the Specialized Directorate Operational and Technical Operations (SDOTO) until June 2013
In June 2013, he became the Director of SDOTO at the Ministry of Interior. Since August 2013 he has been Deputy Chairman of SATO. As of 23 October 2013, he was appointed as Chairman of State Agency Technical Operations by Decision of the Council of Ministers 636/23.10.2013.
Upon a proposal from the Council of Ministers, he was appointed as Chairman of State Agency Technical Operations with Decree 209/20.10.2017 by the President of the Republic of Bulgaria Rumen Radev.
With Decree 258/30.09.2021 by the President of the Republic of Bulgaria, on a proposal of the Council of Ministers, he was dismissed from his position as Chairman of State Agency Technical Operations.