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President Plevneliev: There is no alternative to co-operation and integration for the sake of ensuring lasting peace and stability

“Bulgaria is part of a very dynamic region between the Western Balkans and the Black Sea, which borders the Middle East. That is why our country is interested in the processes of integration and the sharing of resources and defence in NATO and in the European Union.” This was said by President Rosen Plevneliev in a speech today on “Current issues and priorities in the national security of the Republic of Bulgaria” to the Atlantic Club at the Sheraton Hotel Sofia.

The President emphasised that integration means security and defines the difference between going it alone and having the opportunity to be part of a strong and active international community sharing common values and that has the potential to speak with one voice.

He said that the processes of globalisation and rapid changes in the factors that determine the security environment require each country to expand their planning horizons beyond 2020. The key issues regarding security and stability in Bulgaria, he said, were demographics, immigration, technological development and resource management.

President Plevneliev said that as part of the EU and of NATO, Bulgaria had a responsibility in formulating the overall policies of these communities as the most secure way of protecting its national interests. “This includes matters of co-operation in defence, participation in allied missions and contributions to national security in peacetime,” President Plevneliev said. Modernisation, restructuring and upgrading of the military, securing and maintaining military forces, were described by President Plevneliev as the most serious challenges facing Bulgaria’s armed forces.

He said that addressing these issues required a pragmatic approach and the setting of priorities, enabling fewer resources to achieve more. “For that reason, we have identified as a national priority the inclusion of ‘smart defence’ in the concept of NATO and ‘pooling of resources and cost sharing’ in the concept of the EU,” the President said. He said that the National Security Strategy adopted by the National Assembly in March 2011, which shapes state policy in this regard, fully meets the priorities set out in the Strategic Concept for the Defence and Security of NATO from 2010 and in the EU’s Lisbon Treaty.

“In the long term, security and stability will depend not only on Bulgaria’s ability to develop and to innovate, but also on developing a competitive economy based on high technology and the industries of the future, including information and communication technology, biotechnology, manufacturing, food industries and health care,” the President said. He reiterated that he would continue to push for the development and implementation of effective programmes and projects that promote quality education in the engineering and technical files, as well as developing technology and industrial parks. Establishing Bulgaria as an important factor in high technology would make the country a desirable partner and ally, the President said.

The President said that the effective management of water and energy resources and food production would be of strategic importance to the future of Bulgaria. This required the country both to have specific plans for the management of these, as well as an accurate assessment of plans for investment in these sectors. He said that Bulgaria expects that by 2020, eight billion leva will have been invested in water management and 10 billion leva in agriculture. “But it does not end there. I would like to see the Bulgarian farmer become a producer and exporter of food and able to increase the value added in this sector. For that reason, this issue is a priority for Bulgaria to 2020,” President Plevneliev said.

Increasing demand for energy and the creation of conditions necessary for sustainable development make it necessary for Bulgaria to ensure its energy security, the President said.He said that this includes the definition of energy efficiency as a national priority, diversification of sources and routes of energy resources and energy infrastructure development. Bulgaria’s participation in the project to transport natural gas of national significance is a clear indication of the country’s priorities in this regard, President Plevneliev said. It was clear that energy independence is a major component of energy security, which implies that Bulgaria must also clearly recognise the role of natural gas fields.

President Plevneliev told the forum that the country would complete the process of preparing a conceptual framework and adopting laws on the operation and management of the security services. “I am sure, that after the commitments made to me by all parties represented in Parliament, the laws on the National Protection Service, National Security Service and Military Intelligence will be adopted by the end of April 2013, in the best interest of national security,” he said.

In conclusion, President Plevneliev said that a united Europe, like none other, deserved the Nobel Peace Prize, because European integration today means security, stability, lasting peace and human progress. He said that ideologies increasingly play a lesser role, and debates in Parliament are on issues important to society – how, regardless of their political affiliation, governments can provide access to quality health care, education and create opportunities for everyone. He emphasised that the country was on the right path and was achieving progress, but the question now facing Bulgaria was about achieving the results of reforms faster and in the public interest.