Bilateral Relations, Defence Spending on Agenda of Polish President Duda's Sofia Visit

Bilateral relations and defence spending were discussed during Polish President Andrzej Duda's visit to Sofia on Wednesday. He was in Bulgaria for a day on the invitation of Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev.

The Polish head of State and his wife Agata Kornhauser-Duda were welcomed in Sofia by President Radev and his wife Desislava Radeva with an official ceremony in the St. Alexander Nevsky Square. The two head a one-on-one meeting later in the day. The guest also conferred with National Assembly Chair Nataliya Kiselova and Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov.

Poland is an extremely important economic, trade, and investment partner for Bulgaria, and the growing volume of trade year after year is a testament to this, said President Rumen Radev after a one-on-one meeting with Andrzej Duda. “With President Duda, we are connected not only through active professional cooperation and partnership, but I can confidently say through a sincere friendship, which reflects the friendship between our two nations, built on centuries-old spiritual, cultural, and historical ties,” Radev stated.

"We also discussed the challenges facing our continent. First and foremost, this means ending the bloodshed in Ukraine and achieving a sustainable peace based on the principles of international law and the UN Charter," the President said. Asked how soon peace in Ukraine might be achieved and what role the EU should play, he said that it is a question even the world’s strongest leaders cannot yet answer. However, he stressed, "we must move toward unity - and that unity must be based on a swift cessation of hostilities, which should be set as a clear objective, followed by negotiations to achieve a lasting, sustainable peace based on international law."

"President Trump’s strong initiative, taken at the very start of his term, to pursue a ceasefire was at odds with the views of many European leaders, who wanted to provide full support to Ukraine so that the fighting could continue," Radev said. "I strongly hope that all sides will learn their lessons and we will be able to unite efforts to achieve sustainable peace. It is especially important for Europe to find its place in this process and develop its own vision for peace, because what leading European leaders are currently articulating is a vision of how the war should continue, but not how peace should be achieved." Every day of this war brings more victims, destruction, and devastation, "which one day Europe will have to rebuild," he concluded.

President Andrzej Duda said in his statement to the press after meeting with Radev, that he had submitted a letter to the NATO Secretary General advocating for an increase in defence spending by member states to at least 3% of their GDP. “Our proposal to allocate 3% of gross domestic product (GDP) for defence is, in my view, reasonable, realistic, and achievable,” he said. He noted that he discussed the topic with his Bulgarian counterpart.

He also pointed out that an exchange of experience is possible regarding the F-16 fighter jets, as the Polish army has been operating them for years.

“In Poland, we want the war in Ukraine to end, and for Ukraine to preserve its sovereignty. We want the war to end with a lasting peace—one that ensures Russia never again attacks anyone,” the Polish president said.

According to him, the United States is capable—through economic competition and various forms of influence on the global market—of compelling Putin to stop the aggression in Ukraine. Duda expressed hope that this would happen.

He also commented on the advancement of bilateral relations in the field of economy, tourism, and the increase in two-way trade. He urged Bulgarian businesses to invest in Poland and encouraged Polish citizens to visit Bulgaria.

During talks at the National Assembly on Wednesday, Duda also met with National Assembly Chair Nataliya Kiselova. At the meeting, Kiselova underlined the excellent bilateral relations and said the legislature is ready to deepen inter-parliamentary dialogue through the two friendship groups, adding that Bulgaria “continues to rely on Poland's support” for OECD accession. Duda welcomed the rise in bilateral trade and said Bulgaria’s Schengen entry would encourage more Polish investment and tourists, pledging to remain “a great friend of Bulgaria”.

Meeting Prime Minister Zhelyazkov later in the day, Duda heard that Sofia already allocates more than 2% of GDP to defence and is working to strengthen its defence industry, while Zhelyazkov praised Warsaw’s Presidency of the Council of the EU for keeping security high on the agenda. Zhelyazkov highlighted the potential to widen trade and said progress towards euro-area membership remains a priority, a goal Poland supports within the shared framework of the EU and NATO.

/MY/