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BRUSSELS/SOFIA – The Bulgarian position is that the USA must remain in all security formats; without the USA, Europe is weak, said the Prime Minister of Bulgaria Rosen Zhelyazkov to journalists in Brussels, where he arrived to participate in the extraordinary meeting of the European Council dedicated to security and Ukraine. It will take Europe a long time to try to achieve what the partnership in NATO and on a bilateral basis gives us with the USA. We hope the USA will remain committed to our collective security based on values, added the Prime Minister.
Negotiations on Europe’s security must be from Europe and for Europe, said Zhelyazkov. Bulgaria has a strong military industry which we must develop, modernize, and contribute to European security. We have a clear national position that financing should not affect the EU’s cohesion funds, the Prime Minister pointed out regarding the European Commission’s proposals for the rearmament of the EU. According to him, Bulgaria will propose that unused funds from the recovery and resilience mechanism be used in the Bulgarian economy for the defense cluster.
Everything that Bulgaria has committed to and with the acts of the parliament will be implemented, he stated in response to a question about Bulgarian aid to Kyiv. It is important to participate in all formats that guarantee the security of the union, noted the Prime Minister regarding the initiatives of the French President Emmanuel Macron.
Zhelyazkov clarified that his earlier conversation today with the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was at the initiative of the Ukrainian head of state. We said that we are with Ukraine because we believe that the principles of international law should be followed and guarantee every nation that has accepted the UN principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence. We would add democracy, said Zhelyazkov.
Two days ago, Prime Minister Zhelyazkov convened a Security Council at the Council of Ministers, where all parliamentary parties were invited to discuss the geopolitical situation and the threats arising from it to national security. After the meeting, the Prime Minister stated that the Council participants have united around the understanding that a just and lasting peace can be achieved as peace through security for Ukraine and the EU. It was made very clear that Bulgaria cannot afford to be placed actively or passively in a position of choosing its support and attitude to the war among the different trends expressed by the EU and the USA. We view them as allies in NATO and as a joint guarantor of our national security, commented Zhelyazkov.
Our position on Ukraine is the only possible correct one at the moment, commented the leader of GERB Boyko Borisov to journalists in parliament. He also commented on the plan presented by the President of the European Commission (EC) for the rearmament of the EU worth up to 800 billion euros. This Council could result in, through our solidarity with Ukraine, making Europe stronger militarily. This is what the USA actually wants from us, to have Europe and America be equal in NATO, commented Borisov.
Bulgaria must be at the center of Europe, to take the European position. It cannot be on Europe’s periphery, and this is not only an economic goal – for the eurozone but also now a goal for the security of our country, stated in parliament the co-chairman of ‘Continuing the Change’ (PP) Kiril Petkov. I believe that Bulgaria should stand very firmly on the European position, added Petkov.
The party ‘Revival’ did not comment after the Security Council, but days ago, after the meeting between the Presidents of the USA and Ukraine, Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the party expressed full support for Trump “in his quest to restore world peace.”
The chairman of the parliamentary group ‘DPS – New Beginning’ Delyan Peevski defined the Bulgarian position as “spineless.” We will be firmly against anything being supported, all money should be for Bulgarian citizens, everything should be internally for Bulgaria, replied Peevski to a question about aid for Ukraine.
The position of the BSP has been clear from the start. We stated in the early days of this conflict that we must have peace as soon as possible through diplomatic means. Because this war is truly leading to nothing good – not only in Europe but globally, stated the head of the parliamentary group ‘BSP-United Left’ Dragomir Stoynev before the Security Council.
Our position regarding the war in Ukraine should be forged within the framework of the European Council, where Prime Minister Zhelyazkov is making significant efforts for Bulgaria to have a dignified position at the negotiating table, stated Valentin Tonchev on behalf of the PG of “Democracy, Rights, and Freedoms”-DPS. Peace has no alternative, but it cannot be achieved without Ukraine at the table and without the mediating role of the EU, he added.
‘There is Such a People’ have not commented on the Bulgarian position after the Security Council, but the party’s leader Slavi Trifonov posted on social media following the Zelensky-Trump meeting. There is a war being waged 400 km from us, and it must stop. The efforts of all people who have the opportunity to influence this must be directed towards one thing – to stop the war, he stated.
Bulgaria needs rearmament. The position of MECH is firmly for peace – military actions in Ukraine must stop, said the chairman of the parliamentary group ‘Morality, Unity, Honor’ Kiril Veselinski before the Council. (4-5-6.03.2025)