site.btaGovernment Approves Report on the State of Defence and the Armed Forces in 2014

Government Approves Report on the State of Defence and the Armed Forces in 2014

Sofia, March 25 (BTA) - The Council of Ministers approved on
Wednesday a report on the state of defence and the armed forces
in 2014, Cabinet's press service said.

Given the dynamic changes in the security environment, the
Bulgarian armed forces manage to stay in a condition allowing
them to carry out their missions and tasks, despite the
restrictions resulting from the continuous financial shortage
and the critical condition of the weaponry and military
equipment, the report states. The Government proposes that
Parliament reviews and adopts the document.

According to the report, the financial restrictions are the
reason for rational and adequate planning, which has allowed
training plans to be met to a large extent, while the results
point to a successful year.

Efforts in 2014 were focused on providing the conditions for
carrying out those missions, as well as fulfilling this
country's commitments to NATO and the EU Common Security and
Defence Policy.

Two battalion battle groups, part of the land forces, have been
prepared and certified in 2014, which has brought their number
to a total of five, out of the planned six. Twenty-six
formations have met the criteria under the NATO capabilities
goals and 22 of them have already been certified.

A total of 1,043 servicemen have participated in 12 operations
and missions abroad in 2014. Meanwhile, 95 formations of the
Bulgarian Army maintained constant readiness and conducted
operations for providing assistance to the general population. A
total of 167 emergency rescue operations were conducted with
the participation of 1,771 servicemen and 443 equipment units.
Assistance was provided for curbing the increased migration
pressure and the activities for defusing unexploded ammunition
continued.

The report outlines the main areas for formulating and applying
the defence policy in 2015. The programme for the development of
defence capabilities of the armed forces until 2020 is being
prepared, along with a new plan for the development of the armed
forces until 2020, which are based on the results of the 2014
defence capabilities review. Steps are being taken for improving
defence management and the functioning of the integrated
Defence Ministry. The PRINCE2 (PRojects IN Controlled
Environments) method has been introduced, which is a
process-based method for effective project management. A board
has also been established to manage the portfolio of projects.