site.btaFinance Minister Vassilev: Bulgaria Was One of Few Countries that Started Preparing for Prolonged War in Ukraine

Bulgarian Finance Minister Assen Vassilev attended the Southeast Europe Connectivity Forum in Thessaloniki on Tuesday and said that that Bulgaria does not envisage an imminent end to the conflict in Ukraine in its economic and financial planning. "Bulgaria was one of the few countries that started preparing for a protracted war in Ukraine. Our initial estimate was for 5 years, but that horizon may turn out to be short. Therefore, we do not foresee an end soon for the purposes of economic and financial planning," said Vassilev, who is an official guest of the forum in Thessaloniki.

The conference was organized by the SGT Tsomokos communication company in a strategic partnership with the Port of Thessaloniki (ThPA). Indian Ambassador to Athens Rudrendra Tandon was also present at the event.

The Bulgarian authorities have taken into account several scenarios to serve as a starting point for the current war in Ukraine - a Yugoslav scenario and an Iraqi scenario. Vassilev recalled that the conflict in Yugoslavia lasted 7 years, given that it did not carry this geopolitical charge and it was in the 90s.

Until there is a peaceful solution to the conflict, the Finance Minister admitted that the transfer of goods will continue to avoid the northern transport corridors.

Bulgaria is currently preparing to double the traffic through the Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint with Turkeie within 3 years, Vassilev said. Currently, around 4,000 trucks cross the border every day, making it the second busiest in the world.