Baku, November 20, AZERTAC

Caretaker Minister of Defence Atanas Zapryanov confirmed Bulgaria’s engagement in the joint efforts of the European Union in support of Ukraine, reports the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA). Zapryanov spoke at an EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting in defence ministers’ configuration, held in Brussels.

He stressed the importance of the EU Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine, describing it as a key instrument for sustainable assistance. Noting the pivotal role of the Ukraine Facility, he called for providing necessary funding, including by using extra resources from frozen Russian assets.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that a 2% ratio of defence spending to GDP is far from enough amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. EU nations should come close to 3% to address the deficit of critical defence capabilities, Rutte said, as quoted by the Bulgarian Defence Ministry.

The EU defence ministers singled out the development of cooperation with NATO and the avoidance of unnecessary duplication of capabilities and efforts as a matter of priority.

Supporting the recommendations in the report, Strengthening Europe’s Civil and Military Preparedness and Readiness, written by the European Commission President’s Special Adviser Sauli Niinisto, the ministers said the critical shortage of capabilities should be reflected in the anticipated White Paper on the Future of European Defence.

At a meeting of the Steering Board of the European Defence Agency, Zapryanov supported the budget for 2025 and the Coordinated Annual Review on Defence 2024.

For the first time, the adoption of the review came with the signing of political letters of intent, which provide for future joint acquisition of capabilities in several domains. The Bulgarian Defence Minister affixed his signature to the letters of intent for cooperation in acquiring capabilities and developing industrial capacity in anti-missile and air defence and in barrage munitions. The anti-missile and air defence initiative received political support from 18 of the 27 EU member states, and the barrage munitions initiative was backed by 17 states.