NEWS

No country can guarantee its safety on its own. Bulgaria will be strong only if it is  integrated into the family of democratic countries, said President Rosen Plevneliev at the opening of the Centre of Excellence in investigating, building and improving NATO capabilities in Crisis Management and Disaster Relief as an international organization within the Alliance. This is the first NATO structure on Bulgarian territory and part of the network ?? Centres of Excellence of the Alliance. It is the result of the joint efforts of Bulgaria, Greece, Poland and the Allied Command Transformation in Norfolk. 

 

The opening of the NATO Centre in Bulgaria will contribute towards raising the operative compatibility and improvement of military and civil capabilities of the alliance for crisis management and disaster relief, underscored in his statement the Head of State. The instability of the conflicts in Ukraine, the Middle East and North Africa affect the security environment in Europe, engender common challenges before NATO and require a common reaction, also noted Rosen Plevneliev.

 

In the President’s view, in addition to the threats and risks of an asymmetrical nature, NATO allies should be prepared to effectively counteract the new type of “hybrid” activities for destabilization and opposition. “At the Summit meeting in Wales we reached a unanimous consensus regarding the measures to take. The Readiness Action Plan” was also adopted, underlined the Head of State. 

 

Rosen Plevneliev was adamant that only within the framework of a collective security and defence system can NATO countries guarantee their independence and protection of common human values, democracy and the rule of law. The initiatives “Intelligent defence“, “Connectedness of forces” and “Framework countries conception” provide the possibility for member countries to contribute towards the collective security by means of specialization and cooperation. “I sincerely hope that we will be more active in carrying out joint projects, as well as in building joint defence capabilities with the armed forces of our neighbours and partners. Bulgaria is a leading nation in the creation of this Centre and this is proof of our ambitions to be an active participant in integration processes”, said the President and appealed for a stronger Bulgarian presence in initiatives and projects within NATO and the European Union. 

 

The meeting was held at the initiative of Denmark's ambassador to Bulgaria Flemming Stender within the framework of the Danish Presidency of the Council of the EU

In his speech, the president pointed out that Bulgaria highly values its relations with Iraq, which is an important partner in the Middle East region

Taking advantage of their geostrategic position, Bulgaria and Georgia have the potential to deepen their connectivity in various areas such as transport, energy, and the digital sector, which will contribute to promoting the economy, investment, and prosperity in the Black Sea region. This was stated by President Rumen Radev, who held a meeting with the Speaker of the Parliament of Georgia, Shalva Papuashvili.

The two were unanimous that restoring peace in Europe through diplomacy is a priority for the EU and the only way to ensure the long-term security and stability of the Old Continent.