site.btaNATO Supreme Allied Commander Transformation Visits Bulgaria, Confers with State, Defence Leaders

The NATO Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, General Philippe Lavigne, is on an official visit to Bulgaria from March 6 to 8, the Defence Ministry reported. On Thursday, March 8, Lavigne conferred with state and defence officials among whom Bulgaria’s Chief of Defence Admiral Emil Eftimov, Defence Minister Todor Tagarev, President Rumen Radev and outgoing Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov.

Lavigne and Eftimov gave a joint briefing at the Bulgarian Defence Ministry.

Regarding the feasibility of the plans about the adequate armed forces Bulgaria should have now and in ten years' time, Admiral Eftimov said it is a process that should be the subject of a long-term national security and defence policy.

"General Lavigne and I discussed issues within the framework of the Alliance's collective security system, especially in the current deteriorated environment as a result of the war in Ukraine. We talked about the security situation on NATO's Eastern flank," Admiral Eftimov said.

Lavigne noted that Bulgaria's contribution to NATO is crucial, especially with regard to the Black Sea region and the Eastern flank. He also said that the hosting of a NATO battle group on the territory of Bulgaria, this country's contribution to the KFOR mission and the NATO mission in Iraq, and its support for Ukraine are proof of Bulgaria's commitment.

The two main threats to NATO are Russia and terrorism, the NATO General said. He noted that the issue of the Balkans is on NATO's agenda. As an Alliance of 32 countries, NATO needs to ensure that it is more mobile and more flexible and achieve this through its coordinated course of transformation, General Lavigne said, adding that NATO must continuously adapt and transform.

The talks between Lavigne and Tagarev focused on the Alliance's adaptation to contemporary and future challenges. The two also discussed new approaches in defence planning and specific issues on the agenda of the upcoming Washington Summit. Space technology and artificial intelligence for security and defence purposes were discussed in view of the future challenges. An emphasis was placed on human capital in defence, the press centre of the Defence Ministry said. 

Lavigne and Radev shared the position that the most significant element in the defence and security system are the people and along with increasing investments in modern technologies in the defence sector, it is crucial to focus efforts on attracting and motivating young people in the sector, because in this respect there is an outflow not only in Bulgaria, the President's press service said.

Denkov and Lavigne discussed digital transformation, innovation and the development of artificial intelligence for defence and security purposes, the Council of Ministers said.