site.btaNational Security Council Reconfirms Commitment to Increased Defence Spending but from Next Year

National Security Council Reconfirms Commitment to Increased Defence Spending but from Next Year

Sofia, April 27 (BTA) - The Consultative Council on National
Security (CCNS) Monday reconfirmed Bulgaria's commitment to
increased defence spending but from next year. This means to
gradually increase it to 2 per cent of GDP over a period of ten
years. 2015 will be an exception due to the emergencies and
unforeseen costs during the year, a CCNS Monday statement said.

Bulgaria's defence budget for 2015 is set at 1.16 per cent of 
GDP and is some 30 million euro smaller than the year before. 

Announcing the decisions of the meeting after discussions of
over three hours, President Rosen Plevneliev said that they
rallied broad political support with the exception of the
Socialist party and the nationalist Ataka.

The meeting was convened by Plevneliev to look at the shape of
the Bulgatian armed forces and hear the ideas of Defence
Minister Nikolai Nenchev for development of the defence sector.
Participating were the Prime Minister, the Ministers of Defence,
 of Foreign Affairs, of the Interior and of Finance, the head of
 the State Agency for
National Security and a representative from each parliamentary
force. Also attending were Deputy Prime Minister Meglena Kuneva,
 National Intelligence Service Director Maj. Gen. Dragomir
Dimitrov and acting Defence Information Service Director Col.
Svetoslav Daskalov.

The participants agreed that the government would submit to
Parliament for debates and adoption a programme for development
of the defence capacities of the Bulgarian armed forces. Once it
 is adopted by the legislature, the executive will prepare a
detailed development plan.

The CCNS also decided that the future investment in defence
capabilities be in keeping with the NATO standards and be aimed
at enhancing the interoperability with the allies as much as
this country can afford.

The statement adopted by the participants in the meeting says
that Bulgaria is in a situation of lasting deterioration of the
environment security close to the national borders. It speaks of
 "persisting negative trends of deterioration of the existing
conflicts and emergence of new conflicts which are having an
adverse impact on national security and call for the development
 of adequate defence capabilities of the Bulgarian armed forces
and maintenaing adequate degree of readiness".

President Plevneliev thanked the CCNS members for their
responsible attitude to the armed forces and expressed hope that
 the decisions made Monday will soon be implemented. "Lots of
debates are to be held in Parliament, followed by the adoption
of the programme and the plan. These will be very clear and
specific documents: we agreed today on the principles that will
help us step on a solid groundwork," the President added. 

PM: New fighters will be bought for the Air Force when there is
money

On his way out of the CCNS meeting, Prime Minister Boyko
Borissov said that new fighters will be bought for the Air Force
 when there is money, two or three years from now. "No more
money can be made available for armament for the armed forces
this year," he said adding that the priority this year is
pensions, infrastructure and education. 

"The reform in the armed forces will start in 2016 when the
National Revenue Agency and the Customs Agency collect more
money. But this should not be interpreted as breaking the
promise that President Rosen Plevneliev made at the NATO Summit
in Wales in 2014 for increasing defence spending," Borissov
said. He went on to say that Bulgaria has proven "a much more
loyal member of NATO" when it kept its contingent in
Afghanistan. "Many countries pulled out their contingents there
and now they tell us to give money for this or that. [...] By
2024 we will have reached the benchmark. Everybody in NATO knows
 this."

Defence Minister Nenchev said he was happy with the decisions
made at the CCNS meeting.

Reformist Bloc co-leader Radan Kanev said that Nenchev received
"very strong support" from the leaders of the State and the
government, and from the other parliamentary groups. "I saw an
increased confidence in the policy he stands for." 

Socialist leader: Unacceptable decision

Emerging from the meeting, Socialist leader Mihail Mikov said
that his party will not be part of the final decision of the
CCNS and finds it unacceptable. He argued that the condition of
the armed forces and national security should have been
discussed in this format only after a debate in Parliament "on
all aspects of the situation". He said the report presented by
the Defence Minister "slightly exaggerates the situation so as
to justify the demands for increased defence spending".

He also said that making a commitment for an increase of defence
 spending as did the CCNS neglects other sectors which need
serious additional funding just as much.

"Much more information is needed about the condition of the
defence sector, the commitments Bulgaria is making and about
security with all its aspects, including demographics and the
economic development of this country", Mikov added.

On his way into the President's Office for the meeting Patriotic
 Front co-leader Krassimir Karakachanov commented that the army
"is breathing its last". He said that "either the armed forces
should be disbanded leaving only the guard of honour to salute
the President," or serious measures need to be taken. He was
adamant that a discussion on the military industrial complex
should be part of the discussion on the armed forces. "They are
very much interconnected and one can provide resources for the
other."

The participants in the Consultative Council were met by a rally
 held outside the President's Office in support of Defence
Minister Nikolai Nenchev. There were slogans reading "Well done,
 Minister Nenchev!" and "Bulgaria: Loyal and Secure Member of EU
 and NATO". Close to them was another group of people picketting
 for Bulgaria's withdrawal from NATO and against participation
in a conflict with Russia. Both rallies were guarded by
gendarmerie and there were no clashes.