site.btaCentral Military Club in Sofia Hosts Forum on NATO after Summit in The Hague in June

A conference on NATO after the Summit in The Hague on June 25 and the Bulgarian dimension in 2025-2035 took place here on Thursday. The forum was organized by the Atlantic Club of Bulgaria with the support of the Atlantic Alliance Reserve Officers.

Defence Minister Atanas Zapryanov, who spoke at the event, warned that Bulgaria is among the most heavily targeted countries by Russian propaganda. He stressed that such propaganda aims to create the perception among the public that NATO’s decisions in The Hague are meaningless, as well as to sow division among citizens, ultimately undermining trust in NATO and the EU. The Minister concluded that greater investments are necessary to achieve stronger defence capabilities.

Foreign Minister Georg Georgiev stated that NATO and the European Union have become integral parts of life in Bulgaria, a reality in which Bulgarians have developed themselves both as people and as citizens. He reported that after the conference in The Hague, NATO emerged more united and stronger. He added that the critical question of securing political support for military expenditures was answered by the decision to raise military spending to 5% of GDP, an objective that is "no longer a distant goal but a logical step forward in defence contributions".

Parliamentary Defence Committee Chair Hristo Gadzhev said that one of the future meaningful projects is for the Government to entrust Bulgarian companies with the creation of drone production technology for the armed forces. Gadzhev added: "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." The MP pointed out that Bulgaria has been producing ammunition since the era of socialism, and this product will always be needed, however, 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.

Atlantic Club of Bulgaria President Solomon Passy warned that there is no greater threat to Bulgaria than Russian propaganda. According to Passy, considering the wildfires ranging during the summer season, it would be appropriate for NATO to discuss the establishment of a joint force or a joint compound to fight disasters and accidents.