Head of State meets with the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee 

The main challenge facing the Armed Forces is how to most effectively transform the political will and allocated funds into adequate defence capabilities. This was stated by President Rumen Radev at a meeting with the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, who is visiting our country. The conversation was attended by the Chief of Defence, Admiral Emil Eftimov, and the military representative of the Chief of Defence to the NATO Military Committee and the EU Military Committee, Lieutenant General Yavor Mateev.

The Head of State highlighted Bulgaria's aspiration to continue to establish itself as a factor of stability in a region surrounded by multiple crises - the war in Ukraine, military operations in the Middle East, tensions in the Western Balkans and other regional challenges. He also emphasised the important contribution of the NATO Multinational Battle Group with Italy as a framework country in our country, as well as the joint work to strengthen cooperation in the Black Sea region.

Efforts to build modern defence capabilities can only be effective when supported by society, President Radev pointed out. For his part, Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone stressed that increased defence funds within NATO must be spent in a reasonable manner and include the development and full use of the industrial capacity of member states.

The development of the defence industry should be considered as part of the defence capacity, noted the President and the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee. In this regard, Radev stressed that Bulgaria has experience and established traditions in world markets in certain sectors, including the production of ammunition, small arms, drones and anti-drone systems. Within NATO, we must strive for closer integration of the defence industry even in the initial phases of development and production of defence equipment, so as not to deepen the division between producer countries and consumer countries of defence products, President Radev pointed out.

As a key challenge not only for the Bulgarian army but also for the armed forces in Europe, the head of state highlighted the shortage of personnel. He therefore called for consideration to be given to introducing standards within NATO for the recruitment and training of military personnel.

The common position was that the building of defence capabilities is not limited to the efforts of the Armed Forces, and security and defence also affect economic processes, business competitiveness, connectivity and security of supply chains. Radev called for consistent efforts by NATO to accelerate the construction of connecting infrastructure in the region, including the Alliance's fuel pipeline project, the work on completing Transport Corridor 8 and connectivity across the Danube River.