Velizar Shalamanov, Caretaker Defense Minister

Velizar Shalamanov, Caretaker Defense Minister

 

Velizar Shalamanov was born on 24 December 1961 in Karlovo.

 

He graduated with excellent grades and a gold medal the secondary school of mathematics “Academician Kiril Popov” in Plovdiv in 1979 and he received his master’s degree in radio electronics with excellent grades and a gold medal from the Higher Military Air Force School Georgi Benkovski in Dolna Mitropolia in 1984. 

 

In 1991 he defended his PhD thesis in Kiev in cybernetics and in 1998 he became associate professor in automated government systems.

 

In 1995 he graduated the Georgi Rakovski Military Academy in Sofia with a  master’s degree in organisation and management of operational and tactical intelligence. He has completed courses in the USA and Germany, also at the George Marshall European Center for Security Studies.

In 1984-1998 he consecutively served as officer in Bulgarian Army units, including the Government Systems Institute at the General Staff as the head of Military Intelligent Systems department and in the Intelligence and Electronic Warfare Division of the Main HQ of the Land Forces.

 

In the 1998-2001, Dr Shalamanov was Deputy Minister of Defence for Policy, Planning and Integration, also member of the Security Council of the Government and the Interagency NATO Integration Council. He was also Chairman of the Board of Directors of TEREM Stock Holding Company.  

 

In 2001- 2009 he was advisor on National Security and Defence to the Chairman of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Director of Programmes in the Center for National Security and Defence Research, Head of the Research and Development of Informational Systems Department at the Institute of Parallel Processing.  He was also part-time lecturer at Sofia University, the University of National and World Economy, New Bulgarian University, chief of a lot of projects funded by national and international institutions, co-founder of the George Marshall Association – Bulgaria and the Association of the Officers in the Reserve Atlantic. 

 

In 2009 – 2012 he was Director in charge of cooperation with the nations of NATO Consultation, Command and Control Agency, and as of 2013 he is Director Demand Management for the NATO Communications and Information Agency (NCIA). 

 

In 2002-2012 Dr. Shalamanov was member of the International Advisory Board of the Geneva Center for Democratic Control of Armed Forces (DCAF) and since 2013 he is member of the Board of Directors of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association (AFCEA Int).

 

In 2008-2010 he was member of the European Security Research and Innovation Forum ESRIF. 

 

Fluent in English and Russian.