President Ilyana Yotova told Bulgarian journalists in New York that she expects the European Union to take a more active role in stopping the war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East. She is leading the Bulgarian delegation to the 81st session of the UN General Assembly, whose general political debate began yesterday, Bulgarian time.
According to Yotova, speeches at the forum today barely mention Europe, and the EU remains in the background. She expects more European leaders to address the issue tomorrow. In her view, peace in Ukraine and the Middle East cannot be achieved without ambitious, expert-driven proposals from the bloc.
The head of state said her address to the General Assembly would also touch on the war Russia launched with its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. "This is a conflict at the heart of Europe. We cannot stand aside and say that the conflict is being resolved between Russia, Ukraine and the United States," she said.
Yotova added that she hopes to speak in New York with the chairman of the Peace Council, Nikolay Mladenov, to learn about the next steps regarding the Gaza Strip.