Rumen Radev: I am still of the position that Bulgaria should not give weapons to Ukraine
Nothing can justify the Kremlin’s aggression and war crimes, but I stand by my position that Bulgaria should not send weapons to this conflict, President Rumen Radev said today in an interview with “Darik Radio”. As is known, the assistant of the parliament decided to send weapons and ammunition to Ukraine, and it is still not clear what exactly the contents of the military will be.
“As for the other opinion, you must know well the deep political and historical roots of this conflict, but also present an analysis of the risks and consequences of such an act. about the risks for the Bulgarian population,” he added.
According to him, giving up arms is not the way to peace, because it is like putting out a fire with gasoline. “The view that there must be war until the total collapse of one side is inevitable and not gradually pushing towards a global conflict with the possibility of nuclear self-destruction,” is the president’s view.
For Radev, it is important to ask and answer the question of what peace would look like after the war. “One year has passed, the war is getting fiercer. It is already a global economic clash, it is a war of attrition, not only between Russia and Ukraine, but also for Europe. European citizens feel it in inflation and unemployment. If the richer European countries can afford to give arms and continue this war of social and economic attrition because the people have no personal reserves both as a country and as citizens. they are below the line for a decent way of life. How will it affect them” , pointed out Rumen Radev.
The article in Die Welt is commissioned
“The bespoke nature of the article in Die Welt looms large. This is how Rumen Radev commented on a publication for the German edition of this week, in which it is stated that Bulgaria, albeit secretly, began to supply weapons to Ukraine already at the beginning of the war.
He also does not accept the policy of Kiril Petkov’s government to bring out such hidden aid. “Politics is a public activity. It is done by individuals who go out in front of the public and announce their ideas. If you do something behind the back of the public, aren’t you entering the realm of behind-the-scenes deals with foreign partners,” he asked.
Legal changes to regulate grants
On the question of whether Russia intervenes in the internal affairs of Bulgaria, the president, that Bulgaria is subject to the influence of more than one country and Russia is one of them. According to him, countries use different ways of influence, and it is no secret that politicians, analysts and the media are fed with grants. “And we have to think very seriously, isn’t it time for legislative changes to regulate some financial flows on this influence. It should be clear where they come from, what they are used for. By receiving financial funds, you become a conduit of some kind of policy”, emphasize Radev.
I will not beg for Schengen, we will convince them
As expected, the president paid serious attention to the subject of Schengen, creating his contribution to this country being on the verge of entering the community. “We have an agreement for the month of October for Schengen, but the parliament must also take its actions and responsibility,” pointed out Radev.
According to him, the refusal to accept Bulgaria and Romania was a slap against the clearly defined European rules, principles and criteria for acceptance into the Schengen area.
“Bulgaria and Romania have fulfilled all the technical criteria for entering this Schengen area and on several occasions, outside the agenda of the European Council, they aggressively take the floor and insist on the countries that hesitate to clearly set the table according to whatever these criteria are.” the president pointed out.
However, they did not, and this was the reason why the supporters of the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to Schengen were constantly increasing, and the wavering ones were increasing.
“We have relations with two countries – Austria and the Netherlands. The society there, and especially the opposition, must be convinced, because this is your political problem, that Bulgaria and Romania reliably protect the external borders of the low borders of the EU (EU),” Radev pointed out. He added that protecting the borders should be a commitment of the entire EU, and not for Bulgaria to handle alone.
Radev emphasizes that the claims that Bulgaria has a problem with border protection and compliance with information are only in the realm of hypotheses. He reports that Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer is arriving on Monday at his invitation. “Together with him, we will go to the border, with a large number of Austrian media, to see that the necessary organization has been created in Bulgaria,” Radev also pointed out. He added that no country can promise zero migration, but the organization of border security is limited.
The President emphasizes that there has been a serious improvement in the capture of migrants who have already passed the borders. “You remember if before that they were chased on highways. It didn’t happen. We have to ask ourselves the question, “Why didn’t it happen?” It’s just that now there is a political will to take real action on this issue,” said Radev.
“I think that the Austrian public will be defeated. We will not pray, we do not pray to anyone. We worthily defend our right to be part of an integrated Europe”, is his opinion. Radev pointed out that citizens of Austria, the Netherlands, Germany and all EU countries benefit from migrant trafficking as organizers. “And I ask the question: What are you doing? These are joint efforts. There is a problem in the functioning of the Schengen area itself, but this is not Bulgaria’s problem,” Radev said.
Diary