Bulgaria: Increase in Defense Budget and Modernization

Bulgaria's main priority is the increase of the defense budget and the realization of current modernization projects, said Defense Minister Atanas Zaparov, focusing on the discussions within the Alliance regarding the fair sharing of costs. The Minister's statement was made at the meeting of the defense ministers of the NATO member countries, which was held today in Brussels, Belgium.

According to a press release from the Ministry of Defense, the emphasis in Minister Zaparov's statement was the need to increase investments in defense and the implementation of the commitments made in The Hague. The atmosphere in the hall where the meeting was held was tense, there was a palpable search for consensus on key security issues.

Minister Zaparov recalled that Bulgaria has received a positive response for financial assistance in the form of a loan under the "European Security Measures" (SAFE) instrument and will use it to finance projects related to the construction of NATO's deterrence and defense capabilities. This decision is seen as key to strengthening the country's defense capabilities.

Within the framework of the discussions, the need to counter Russian unmanned aerial systems was also discussed. Minister Zaparov stressed that a number of allies already have available systems to combat drones, but according to him, the Alliance's response should be unconventional and innovative. "Bulgaria is strongly interested in using all the opportunities offered by NATO, the EU and on a bilateral basis to accelerate the integration of innovative technologies into our Armed Forces", he stressed.

The Minister of Defense noted that peace and security in the Western Balkans, as well as the strengthening of deterrence and defense in the Black Sea, are of national interest to Bulgaria. "These regions face the same risks and security threats as other strategic regions of the Alliance and we have always supported maintaining NATO's focus on them", he said.

The meeting discussed progress in the implementation of capability goals, strengthening the Alliance's deterrent and defense potential, as well as missions and operations, in the context of the decisions taken at the Hague Summit. The implementation of commitments to increase defense spending and the capabilities of the defense industry, the latest incidents related to the violation of the airspace of the allies, as well as measures for enhanced vigilance "Eastern Sentinel" were considered.

In an informal session of the NATO-Ukraine Council, with the participation of the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Denys Shmyhal, and the High Representative of the EU, Kaja Kallas, the ministers discussed long-term political and practical support for Ukraine. The specific discussion of support for Ukraine reflects the growing concern for regional stability, given the ongoing aggression of Russia.

The debate on building the necessary defense capabilities of the member states and increasing their defense readiness continued in a European format within the framework of the working dinner of the "Foreign Affairs/Defense" Council of the EU. The protection of the Union's eastern borders and European airspace was again the focus of the discussions of the defense ministers. "Bulgaria plans to invest significant funds through the SAFE mechanism in air and missile defense capabilities, drones and anti-drone systems", Minister Zaparov said in his statement. The implementation of the new EU initiative to protect the eastern flank is expected to be an element of the Defense Readiness Roadmap, which is to be presented by the European Commission in the coming days. "EU efforts should contribute to the implementation of defense plans and NATO's capability goals with regard to the entire spectrum of operations in all operational domains", Minister Zaparov pointed out. He also spoke in favor of increased funding for building defense capabilities from the EU budget, including for expanding the capacity of the defense industry on a European scale.

Within the framework of his visit to Brussels, Minister Zaparov held a bilateral meeting with the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Denys Shmyhal, at which issues of bilateral cooperation were discussed.

At a trilateral meeting with the defense ministers of Turkey and Romania, topics of mutual interest related to regional cooperation in the Black Sea region were discussed. Minister Zaparov also participated in a meeting of the Contact Group for the provision of defense assistance to Ukraine.

In The Hague, NATO member states agreed to increase military spending to 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) in the next decade. Of these, 3.5% will be for basic defense spending, and 1.5% - for defense and security-related investments in areas such as infrastructure and industry. The current NATO target for defense spending is 2% of GDP.