site.btaPresident Rumen Radev Comments on Current Middle East Situation

The escalation of hostilities holds enormous potential for global destabilization and an unprecedented humanitarian crisis, President Rumen Radev told journalists regarding the Hamas-Israel conflict.

"We expect both countries to realize their responsibility towards peace, security and the lives of thousands of people in the Middle East region. There should be restraint, reason, to avoid further escalation, which could lead to irreversible consequences. The timely, adequate response of both the UN and the entire international community is very important for de-escalation. You can see that the tension is growing by the hour and the probability that other participants will be involved is not insignificant at all," commented Radev.

When asked whether the Bulgarian-Turkish border should be further strengthened by additional military personnel, the President stated that there are clear plans for cooperation between the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of the Interior. If necessary and migration pressure increases, more military personnel can be sent out, Radev pointed out. 

It is not just a matter of more military personnel, Radev said, explaining that the caretaker government initiated a task force to facilitate interaction between Bulgarian security services and foreign security services, and stressed the importance of such cooperation.

Regarding whether a possible increase in migrant pressure along the border would threaten Bulgaria's  entry into Schengen, Radev said: "This is a strategic goal for Bulgaria." During the caretaker government and my participation in the Council of the EU, the deadline of October 2023 was agreed on, with a clear plan, clear actions, and interaction. I expect much more action from the government, and precisely in terms of interaction with our partners," said Radev.

"I hope that all institutions involved in national security are clearly aware that we have a new situation," Radev said in response to whether a new meeting and convening of the National Security Advisory Council is necessary. Modern conflicts have shown very clearly that there is a dynamic change in the ways of conducting combat operations and in the use of cheap, accessible, new technologies that give an asymmetric advantage, give informational superiority," commented Radev.

The President noted that it is not just about the big modernization projects. It is high time, taking into account these new dynamics, these methods, that Bulgaria starts more actively engaging with low-budget projects like drones,  anti-drone systems,  cyber operations, information operations, for the necessary information superiority and asymmetric advantage.

He added that it is important to understand that apart from a  technological reform of the security services, the border police, the armed forces, a conceptual reform is also needed.