site.btaNATO Force Integration Unit Activated in Sofia

NATO Force Integration Unit Activated in Sofia

Sofia, September 3 (BTA) - A NATO Force Integration Unit was activated in Bulgaria with a ceremony in Sofia Thursday. Bulgaria's President and Supreme Commander-in-Chief Rosen Plevneliev said the simultaneous unveiling of NATO Force Integration Units in six European capitals, including Sofia, unequivocally attests to NATO's commitment to protecting all its members.

These "headquarters" will serve as a link between national and Allied troops during joint exercises and training and will also provide logistical and infrastructural support for the deployment of NATO high-readiness forces in emergency, when the security and the territorial integrity of NATO member countries on the eastern flank are endangered, the President said.

He stated: "We will resolutely oppose any plans to foment instability and frozen conflicts. We may be a defensive alliance, but that does not mean we are indecisive and passive. On the contrary, today we are demonstrating our resolve and high readiness to act. We want peace, but we can only ensure peace by showing our resolve to resist any destructive actions and any attempts to destroy international legal order."

Plevneliev recalled a recent meeting of Bulgaria's Consultative Council on National Security, which discussed defence matters. He said the military should stop hiring non-NATO arms manufacturers for the building of new capabilities.

James Appathurai, NATO's Deputy Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy, said: "Political commitments have to be backed up by real capability, and this new facility is about real capability... NATO seeks no confrontation with any country, but... our neighbourhood has become more unstable and more dangerous in the past few years. To defend ourselves, we have to adapt, and we are."

The Sofia ceremony saw a live video link with Vilnius where NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg gave an address.

At a separate news briefing in Sofia, Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov said the NATO Force Integration Unit will coordinate activities relevant to collective defence and upcoming exercises, and will be in charge of planning the possible deployment of forces if necessary. The unit will have a staff of 40 people, including 20 Bulgarian officers and 20 officers from other NATO countries.

Chief of Defence, Vice Admiral Roumen Nikolov, said the Force Integration Units are now beginning to operate, but they will not achieve full operating readiness until December, and active operation will start at the beginning of 2016.

James Appathurai congratulated the Bulgarian government "for the speed and commitment and professionalism they have demonstrated in establishing this Force Integration Unit." He said this is not a military headquarters, it will not command troops. "It is for defensive purposes. It poses no threat to anyone," the NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary General said.

While the opening ceremony was in progress, supporters of the nationalist Ataka party gathered outside the venue to protest against NATO's presence in Bulgaria and the country's membership of the bloc.