site.btaPresident, Parliament Chair and Vice President Lay Flowers at Monument to Unknown Soldier in Memory of Those Who Died in WWII

President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Rumen Radev, National Assembly Chair Nataliya Kiselova and Vice President Iliana Iotova laid flowers on Friday at the Monument to the Unknown Soldier in memory of the Bulgarian soldiers who died during World War II.

The event was also attended by His Holiness the Bulgarian Patriarch and Metropolitan of Sofia, Daniil, Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov, representatives of various ministries, politicians, among others.

Speaking to journalists, President Radev noted that “today we honor the sacrifice of the millions who ended Nazism at the cost of their lives”. He pointed out that the soldiers did everything possible for the unification of Europe, among them thousands of Bulgarians who died in World War II. "Today we also pay tribute to the few remaining living veterans of this bloodiest war," added the head of State.

On May 9, Europe must remember that unity and prosperity became possible thanks to the joint efforts to eradicate rivalry, hatred, and disputes—those very things that led to World War II, the President stated. According to him, the tragedy of our time is that 80 years after the end of that war, international disputes are once again being resolved by the force of arms. "Even more concerning is that Europe lacks a vision for ending the war and restoring peace. Instead, it continues to invest in what I consider a doomed cause, driven by the utopian hope that arming Ukraine further will bring it to the negotiating table from a position of strength.” He noted that the toll in human lives, destruction, and lost territory continues to grow.

According to the President, this approach raises serious questions about Europe’s direction. "Is today’s Europe drifting away from the noble project of a united continent founded on peace?" he asked. "Is Europe afraid of peace returning -because peace would bring public attention back to the unresolved crises festering within our own states and societies?"