Radev-Donfried meeting: European integration in Western Balkans is a strategic goal for Europe's security

Radev-Donfried meeting / Photo president.bg

The Bulgarian President Rumen Radev met today with the Assistant Secretary of State of the United States of America, Karen Donfried who is on a two-day visit to Bulgaria.

According to Radev's press service, they discussed the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which is radically changing the security environment not only in the region but also in Europe.

According to Radev, the situation requires reconsideration and real action in the EU and NATO to change approaches to ensuring security and peace.

The strategic partnership between Bulgaria and the United States, as well as the enlargement of the European Union were also discussed at the meeting. Radev and Donfried also spoke about the progress in the process of European integration in the Western Balkans, as a strategic goal to support Europe's security and stability.

Radev stressed that Bulgaria is most interested in speeding up EU membership talks in northern Macedonia, but Sofia expects clear and unequivocally legally binding mechanisms and real steps to eradicate hate speech and systematic examples of discrimination against Bulgarian citizens.

In talks with Donfried, the Bulgarian President stressed that accelerating the European path of Northern Macedonia is key to meeting the Copenhagen criteria for EU membership, achieving sustainable and irreversible solutions for the development of bilateral relations and inclusion of Macedonian Bulgarians in the Constitution, equality with other parts of the nation to guarantee their rights.

He pointed out that a broad consensus has been formed in Bulgarian society on this topic, which has been confirmed by the National Assembly, and as Radev says, "any withdrawal threatens the stability of the EU member state itself."

During the meeting, Rumen Radev called for timely support for Bulgaria from its NATO allies to prevent the loss of the defense capabilities of its armed forces until the receipt of the ordered eight F-16 aircraft. According to Radev, guaranteeing Bulgaria's air sovereignty is of the utmost importance not only for Bulgaria, but also for the Alliance partners.

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