site.btaNational Exercise on Providing Support from Host Country in NATO Held in Sofia

A national exercise on providing support from a host country during the transit and deployment of allied forces in Bulgaria was held on March 10 at the Georgi Rakovski Military Academy in Sofia, the press centre of the Defense Ministry said here on Monday.

The exercise was attended by Defense Deputy Minister Radostin Iliev and representatives of 17 ministries and departments with responsibilities for host country support. Iliev pointed out that the exercise is important not only for the Defense Ministry, but also for all departments that have functions in the field. “In recent years, it turned out that building support capabilities is an additional challenge for all Member States of the Alliance. The leading role in the exercise is assigned to the Defense Ministry, but a large part of the host country support activities are carried out with civilian forces and assets, which requires a state-wide approach,” he emphasized.

The press centre of the Defense Ministry pointed out that such national exercises are held every two years and contribute to increasing the preparation of participants and improving the exchange of information between participating structures. "Providing adequate support from the host country to deploying allied forces is an important factor and essential for achieving the objectives of operations in the context of NATO's collective defense", the press centre said, adding that as a member of the Alliance, Bulgaria has undertaken commitments to provide support from the host country to allied forces transiting or deploying on its territory.