At the moment, the only serious guarantee for Europe's security is NATO and the unity of European countries within the European Union.
This was stated by former Defense Minister Assoc. Prof. Velizar Shalamanov to FOCUS.
The solution to the military conflict in Ukraine must begin in the format of talks between European countries, go through the European Union and reach NATO. The visit of President Macron and Prime Minister Starmer to Washington, the meeting in London and the meeting in Paris are all steps in finding a solution within the Alliance.
"We cannot expect a miracle without talks, without bilateral and multilateral meetings, without consultations - for the leaders of 32 countries to gather and reach a consensus within hours. All this is being prepared with hard work at NATO headquarters, in the capitals. This process is not public, consensus is not achieved with spectacular events", added Shalamanov.
NATO structures are the most reliable guarantee for deterrence and defense of Europe. According to him, the meeting in London clearly shows the role of Great Britain, Turkey and Norway, which are not members of the European Union.
"European defense continues to have and will have a NATO basis in the future. If there are operations on which there is no consensus, there is a "Berlin Plus" mechanism - the European Union or a coalition of European countries can ask NATO to use the Alliance's capabilities for command, control and intelligence without the participation of Americans or officers from countries outside this coalition. So mechanisms exist," explained the former Defense Minister.
Bulgaria's security is related to NATO and its strengthening. Its economic security is linked to the European Union and the stability of the eurozone.
"The new security architecture in Europe inevitably goes through bilateral agreements between European countries and Ukraine. And here, Bulgaria, unfortunately, is lagging behind", noted Shalamanov.
It is in Bulgaria's interest to be part of finding a solution to the conflict in Ukraine. It goes through signing a bilateral security agreement with Kiev, he said.
"Of the countries that have such responsibilities, only Bulgaria, Slovakia and Hungary have not yet signed such an agreement. As a result, they are outside this process," he pointed out.
Velizar Shalamanov believes that a formula for ending hostilities will be found.
"But from then on, it is extremely important that the time that will be gained is used to build security guarantees for Ukraine, so that it is not attacked again, as well as to strengthen its defense, and secondly - to begin the long-term construction of a security system in Europe, which is to a much lesser extent dependent on the commitments and efforts of the United States, which at least since 2001 has very clearly stated that they see security, defense, and deterrence in the Indo-Pacific region as their priority and even expect support from Europe in this effort," he added.
Source: www.focus-news.net