site.btaPresident Radev in New Year’s Eve Address: "We Need Unity and Leadership to Strengthen Statehood, Sovereignty and Rule of Law"

In his traditional New Year’s address to the nation on national television in the final minutes of the outgoing year, President Rumen Radev said that Bulgaria cannot develop as a free European democracy with amnesia and political hypocrisy, with corruption and impunity, with censorship and apathy, with the destruction of national sovereignty and denial of dignity.

President Radev noted that the New Year 2024 will bring new opportunities and hopes, as well as important decisions for Bulgaria.

The head of State expressed hope for a more peaceful and more prosperous year than the previous one, which was "fractured and torn between creation and the worry that history is repeating itself, a year of intensifying military conflicts, devaluation of human life, of crises and economic uncertainty that affected every Bulgarian home, of an unprecedented collapse of trust in the State".

The President pointed out that a prosperity of a nation is measured above all by its moral foundations, enlightenment and courage, without which material prosperity is impossible. "The rise of Bulgaria is impossible in an atmosphere of division and war against national symbols and historical memory. We cannot develop as a free European democracy with amnesia and political hypocrisy, with corruption and impunity, with censorship and apathy, with the degradation of national sovereignty and denial of dignity," he said.

"We need unity and leadership to strengthen statehood, sovereignty and the rule of law; to preserve the peace and guarantee the security of every Bulgarian citizen; to actually prioritize education, science and culture; to lead irreversibly into tomorrow, to our European future, to modernization and accelerated growth of the economy and incomes," Radev was adamant in his speech.

"In its thousand-year history, our people have overcome all kinds of trials, always found the way to freedom and progress, left a bright mark in the cultural development of Europe and an example of enlightened statehood. Together we have the strength to deal with today's challenges, to be more ambitious, to dream bolder, to achieve more," he added.

The Bulgarian President stressed that the invisible bridges of spirit and kindness are more durable than those built by human hands. "Our people have always followed the right path, that of humanity, empathy and mutual respect," he said, urging those celebrating not to forget those on duty, who welcome the holiday at their workplace or post.

Radev noted that all Bulgarians throughout the world will always be connected by the invisible thread of the Bulgarian spirit, national holidays and traditions, the native tricolor flag, a symbol of unity and sovereignty, and the hope for a prosperous and dignified Bulgaria. 

He urged Bulgarians to make their country a place where its children would want to stay, instead of looking for happiness elsewhere. He also urged them to be worthy of a Bulgaria where the next generations will be able to live fully and peacefully.

The President wished that the New 2024 will bring health and prosperity to every Bulgarian home.