site.btaDefence Committee Chair: Meaningful Project that Cabinet Should Task Bulgarian Companies with Is Creation of Military Drone Production Tech

One of the future meaningful projects is for the Government to entrust Bulgarian companies with the creation of drone production technology for the Army, parliamentary Defence Committee Chair Hristo Gadzhev said here on Thursday. He was speaking at a conference on NATO after the Summit in The Hague on June 25 and the Bulgarian dimension in 2025-2035, organized by the Atlantic Club of Bulgaria with the support of the Atlantic Alliance Reserve Officers. 

The conference analysed the messages of the NATO Summit in The Hague 75 years after the Alliance was established.

The increase in EU defence spending is necessary because Russia attacked Ukraine, and it is clear to all what the consequences of this are, Gadzhev said in his speech at the forum. The great war is back on European soil, the peace dividend of the early 1990s is over. Now the question is how most of the money that will be given for defence will have a good effect on the economies, the MP of GERB-UDF said.

According to him, the Government and the National Assembly should be aware of what the effect on the Bulgarian economy would be from increasing defence spending. "We need to ensure that at least 5% of the gross domestic product will be produced by the defence industry; otherwise, we risk losing what we have. Back in the days of socialism, the smart decision was made for Bulgaria to produce ammunition, which will always be needed," Gadzhev said. Since the war in Ukraine began, there has been a big growth in this sector, but the problem, he  argued, is that the ammunition is Soviet-standard and gradually falling out of use. "If we fail to catch up with the production of NATO-standard ammunition, we will drop out of the market," he warned.

"We are living in an industrial revolution, which is passing at a pace we cannot comprehend," Gadzhev further noted. According to him, it is absolutely necessary to invest in innovation, and the Government is working on this matter. For the first time, a public procurement procedure will be launched to develop drone production technology, Gadzhev said. He urged the State to involve private companies in the defence industry. "We have to invest in Bulgarian business, but it has to be competitive in order to produce quickly and qualitatively," the MP argued. He drew attention to the dialogue with industry, which should be part of the State's efforts in terms of innovation in defence.