Every country in the Balkans has its own perspective on history, but one of the most important historical lessons is that after centuries of rivalries and contradictions, we have finally realized that cooperation is a much better choice than wars, said the president of the Delphi Economic Forum
Europe can address the challenges and strengthen its position in a highly contested world if it recognises the significance of the problems, raises its level of ambition and takes concrete actions by stepping out of its comfort zone. This was stated today by the Head of State Rumen Radev in his speech at the Tenth Annual Meeting of the Delphi Economic Forum in the Republic of Greece. The event brings together heads of state and government, representatives of academia, business and the non-governmental sector, who discuss the prospects for sustainable development and competitiveness in conditions of intertwining crises. The focus of the international forum also includes issues related to the consequences of the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East, the challenges facing the energy and economy, connectivity, European unity, rapid technological development and others.
In his speech, Rumen Radev pointed out that the dynamics of geopolitical processes are becoming increasingly high, the architecture of international security is collapsing, established business models are collapsing, the imposed new tariffs are shaking the markets, and stagnation is affecting leading European economies, which makes it extremely difficult to make predictions for the future. This also raises the question of the level of ambition of Europe on how to deal with these challenges and make sense of a number of key areas for its future. As such, Rumen Radev highlighted security, geopolitical positioning, the competitiveness of the European economy, the capital market, energy, innovation and artificial intelligence, and European unity.
Nonetheless, before we tackle the problems of tomorrow, we must learn from the lessons of the past, otherwise the invested time, effort and money will hardly lead to results, the president said, calling for strength and courage to give Europe an honest answer to a number of difficult questions.
The head of state called for answers on how Europe had allowed itself to fall behind in innovation and technology; how it had allowed itself to fall into an energy crisis and why the price of energy is several times lower in the USA and China; why the EU is unable to make decisions quickly; could the war in Ukraine have been prevented; why Russia produces 4 times more ammunition than NATO, as the Secretary General of the Alliance has noted, despite its enormous economic superiority; why Russia continues to advance on the battlefield in Ukraine, despite the colossal financial and military assistance to Ukraine.
Whatever the answers, the EU needs military power and a purposeful approach to decision-making in this turbulent world. We must also realise that the mere accumulation of weapons does not automatically lead to defence capabilities. We need, first of all, a clear political vision and a common defines strategy, Rumen Radev emphasized. As challenges, the president highlighted the unification of the fragmented European defence industry and convincing European citizens that investments in security are justified.
The head of state also pointed out that the EU's achievement of strategic autonomy will require both time and resources, and Europe's security remains dependent on the transatlantic relationship, which should continue to develop. Our common task today is to stop the bloodshed in Ukraine and confidently embark on the path to achieving sustainable and lasting peace, without losing more historical time, the president said, adding that the outcome of these joint efforts has a direct bearing on both the new security architecture and our economic development and competitiveness.
In the long term, ensuring our security will increasingly rely on the competitiveness of the European economy, based on a common EU industrial and financial policy and a strong European capital market, Rumen Radev said.
As another pillar of Europe's strategic autonomy, the head of state highlighted energy security and connectivity - areas in which Bulgaria and Greece continue to establish themselves as an example of excellent cooperation. Rumen Radev pointed to the gas interconnector, the floating liquefied gas terminal near Alexandroupolis, the high-voltage electricity connection Maritsa East - Nea Santa, the vertical gas corridor, the construction of which on Bulgarian territory began this month, the project for the creation of an oil pipeline from Alexandroupolis to Burgas, as contributing to the energy security and diversification of the entire region.
The head of state noted as promising areas of partnership between Bulgaria and Greece the production and storage of energy from renewable sources, since our southern neighbour has the ability to produce a large amount of energy from solar power, and Bulgaria has high-mountain dams and opportunities for the development of combined heat and power plants for their storage. Rumen Radev also emphasized the prospect of cooperation in the creation of large data centres and gigafactories for artificial intelligence.
Bulgaria and Greece are part of Europe and always will be, and our strong cooperation and dedication to European unity and security prove that even if our region forms an external European border, it is not a periphery of the EU, the President said. Rumen Radev recalled the words of the Danish philosopher Kierkegaard that life can be understood only by looking back, but it must be lived only by looking forward. Therefore, although in the Balkans each country has its own perspective on history, one of the most important historical lessons is that after centuries of rivalries and contradictions, we have finally realised that cooperation is a much better choice than wars. Today, Bulgaria and Greece are strategic partners, building together a strong axis of stability and security, which creates better prospects for the entire region. The Head of State also stated that the two countries will continue to deepen their European integration and expressed our country’s gratitude for Greece’s support for the achieved accession to Schengen.
During his speech at the international forum, President Rumen Radev also mentioned the actions taken by Bulgaria to modernise the Bulgarian Army as part of the joint efforts of the EU and NATO to guarantee the security and stability of our region.
During his visit to Delphi, the Bulgarian head of state was accompanied by his wife Desislava Radeva.