For me, it is normal for Bulgaria to think about about 2.5% of GDP for defense. We do not want a shock increase. We must take into account the possibilities of the economies, but with one step of increase we can reach 2.5%. This was stated by the Minister of Defense Atanas Zapryanov to journalists in Munich, where the Munich Security Conference is being held.
„We must definitely increase our budget, because new situations and threats have forced NATO to reconsider its plans, including for Bulgaria. I will soon inform the government what they are”, he added.
„By investing in the creation of capabilities, we are also investing in the capabilities of the EU and NATO. We have one army, we cannot divide it”, the Minister of Defense also said.
“There is good news that Chancellor Scholz confirmed - that the procedure for removing military spending from the inflation calculation index will be implemented. This is a Bulgarian proposal that we have been defending for more than a year and we are glad that the Commission and the member states listened. This means that the Ministry of Finance will not calculate the money for all investment projects for the modernization of the Bulgarian army as an inflation index, which has prevented us from increasing defense money so far”, explained Zapryanov.