Today we celebrate an aircraft with combat number 301, but we mark the beginning of the clear, unwavering and irrevocable ideological modernization of the Bulgarian Army. This was stated by Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov during the official ceremony welcoming the first Bulgarian F-16 Block 70 fighter jet at the Third Air Base in Graf Ignatievo. The Prime Minister emphasized that today symbolizes an ideological change, the beginning of which was laid in 2019.
Then, after difficult political debates and a number of votes in the National Assembly, including an overturned veto, the then majority, embodying Bulgaria's European development and the Euro-Atlantic perspective of our country, made it possible for the fighter jet contract to become a fact. It is an honor for me to accept the result of these efforts, Zhelyazkov said. The Prime Minister emphasized the civilizational choice that Bulgaria has made with EU and NATO membership, with the clear vision of not deviating from democratic values, the rule of law and the protection of human rights.
Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov also noted that the F-16 Block 70 is a symbol of the strategic partnership that Bulgaria has with the United States. A strategic partnership, which is not only in the field of defense, but in the field of energy, which creates structural guarantees for our national security, creates guarantees for increasing the capacity of our armed forces, creates guarantees for security in this troubled region of NATO's Eastern Flank and the Black Sea, Zhelyazkov also pointed out. The Prime Minister pointed out that the multi-role fighter F-16 Block 70 becomes part of the Bulgarian Armed Forces, part of the protection of our airspace, part of the protection of our national sovereignty, part of the combat capability of NATO's Eastern Flank. Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov expressed confidence that the modernization of our army will contribute to making the military profession even more attractive.
