President Bush vowed yesterday to push for the release of five Bulgarian nurses facing the death penalty in Libya, as he rounded off his European tour in Sofia.

Mr Bush praised Bulgaria for its support in Iraq and Afghanistan and reassured it that it would be covered by the proposed US missile defence system in Europe.

Bulgaria has been gripped by the case of the women nurses given the death penalty in Libya for “infecting” 426 children with HIV, despite testimony from Aids experts that poor hygiene was to blame.

Hopes have been raised for a solution that will lead to their release, with extra diplomatic pressure being applied by the European Union, which Bulgaria joined on January 1.

At a toast in his honour by President Parvanov, Mr Bush said: “I care deeply about the Bulgarian nurses. We’re working on a strategy to make sure that these nurses come home as quickly as possible.”

Libya urged America to stay out of talks over their fate, “We hope that Bush and others will leave us to continue negotiations with the concerned parties”, Abdelati Labi-di, the junior foreign minister, told reporters.

On Sunday Saif al-Islam, the son of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, the Libyan leader, had hinted that an agreement may be close.

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