Bulgaria works with allies to ensure security in the Western Balkans. Rest assured, this matter is under our attention. This was stated by the retired Minister of Defense Todor Tagarev at a press conference in the Ministry of Defense in response to a question from BGNES.
Today, he presented the process of sending the Bulgarian armored personnel carriers to Ukraine, recalling that on November 20, the Council of Ministers approved the agreements with Kyiv.
When asked by BGNES why Bulgaria and the Western Balkans underestimate again, as in the 90s, the hegemonic policy of the Russian ally Serbia and the danger of destabilization in the Balkans, Tagarev answered:
"I can't agree with your thesis, maybe the media doesn't pay enough attention to it".
"At all meetings in European Union and NATO formats, the security situation in the Western Balkans is one of the issues discussed. We are working with allies to ensure a higher level of stability and security in the Western Balkans, including through operations KFOR (Kosovo) and Altea (Bosnia and Herzegovina), to which we contribute regularly and currently have military personnel on the ground. Apart from that, we are monitoring the situation and maintaining forces in reserve for which we have commitments," he added.
Todor Tagarev called for calm on the subject.
"Rest assured, this matter is our attention as defense and security specialists," he said.
Asked what a peacekeeping mission like KFOR could do against a Serbian army that has been rearming itself with modern Russian weaponry in recent years, Tagarev said KFOR was not there to fight Serbia's army, but to ensure stability in Kosovo.
"There are mechanisms that can be activated when the risks increase. In a public discourse, I can only allow myself to say this," emphasized the Minister of Defense. /BGNES
