site.btaGen. Andrei Botsev Addresses Balkan Chiefs of Defence Conference

Belgrade, May 24 (BTA) - Addressing the 12th Annual Balkan Chiefs of Defence Conference in Belgrade, Bulgaria's Chief of Defence, General Andrei Botsev, said he expects Exercise Balkan Bridges in Sofia in 2019 to set a good example of regional military cooperation in this part of the world, the Defence Ministry reported on Thursday.

The main theme of the regional conference was security and defence in cyberspace.

Botsev said: "So far, we have conducted one general exercise annually. Next year, in addition to that, we will launch Internet-based courses using the Southeast Europe Education and Training Network." He said that the general exercise, Balkan Bridges, which Sofia will host in 2019, will provide one more occasion for regional military cooperation involving all countries participating in the conference: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, and Turkey.

In a joint statement, the Balkan chiefs of defence said that regional military cooperation should be promoted by conducting at least one additional educational event annually, such as a study course, a seminar or a conference, beginning in 2019. They stated that they count on the Southeast Europe Education and Training Network to conduct online courses.

The conference approved the annual reports of the Coordination Group and its subgroups.