President Rosen Plevneliev held talks with US senators John McCain, Ron Johnson and Christopher Murphy, who are visiting Bulgaria. The Head of State exchanged views with the US senators on the situation in Ukraine, issues related to Bulgaria’s energy security and the cooperation between Bulgaria and the United States in the area of defense and security.
The Head of State and the senators shared the opinion on the need for a strong and united voice of Europe in respect of the crisis in Ukraine. Plevneliev recalled Bulgaria’s categorical position in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity. “The Ukrainian people has the right to alone determine its future,” Rosen Plevneliev was adamant and once again called on for adhering to democratic principles and the rule of law, which, in his words, had been violated with the annexation of Crimea. “It is high time that we set aside the squaring of accounts and speak about values,” the President emphasized.
Senators McCain, Johnson and Murphy pointed out that that one of the goals of their Eastern European tour is to call on for a united voice of Europe in respect of the crisis in Ukraine and also to support the security and stability of the Central and Eastern European countries in the context of the events unfolding to the east of the region.
The participants in the talks also emphasized the need to increase the defense budgets of the NATO member states to the requisite two percent of the GDP. The United States will also continue to support their East European partners within the one billion US$ programme launched by President Obama for strengthening the defense cooperation with the countries in the region.
As for the issue of energy security, the participants in the talks emphasized the energy vulnerability of countries such as Bulgaria to one supplier of energy resources, which requires more cohesion at a regional and European level and diversification not only of the sources, but also of the routes of supply. The President reiterated his position in support of the implementation of the South Stream project but only in line with the European legislation and based on market principles.
Senator John McCain received the Medal of Honour of the Head of State on the occasion of the tenth anniversary of Bulgaria’s NATO membership and in recognition of McCain’s personal contribution to the development of the bilateral relations and his support for Bulgaria’s NATO membership.