"The Bulgarian army is currently 5,600 soldiers short. One of the reasons is the low starting salary of 608 Leva a month," said Defence Minister Krasimir Karakachanov. In his words the most serious problem is that around 30-40 percent of the people applying for professional soldiers are unfit for reasons of health or education.
He added that before a conscription army can be reinstated, for which he says he will be supported by GERB party, the number of military education classes at school must be increased and voluntary service introduced.
Karakachanov says further that the EU is not ready to set up a single defence structure, an idea Bulgaria supports:
"Bulgaria is in favour of the formation of such a defence structure but that is a process. Seeing as we have NATO, this compatibility must be looked into, how a European defence will fit into the picture. There are European countries which are not members of NATO. There are European countries which are more skeptical, others are more enthusiastic like France and Germany."
There is no democracy and freedom without freedom of speech and pluralism, said President Rumen Radev at the opening, in Sofia, of the annual Public Broadcasters International Conference (PBI 2025) . For the first time, the Bulgarian National Radio..
For the first time, the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) is hosting the annual Public Broadcasters International conference . The conference brings together public media bosses and executives from 24 countries across five continents. The theme..
Bulgaria supports the start of EU accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, said Bulgaria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Georg Georgiev during the EU Foreign Affairs Council held in Luxembourg. European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos..
The President of the “Renew Europe” group in the European Parliament, Valérie Hayer, called on the European Commission to urgently send a mission to..
On Thursday, minimum temperatures will range between 6 and 11°C across the country. Along the Black Sea coast, they will reach 13 to 16°C , while in Sofia..
Legislative amendments banning individuals sanctioned under the global Magnitsky law from holding senior government or party positions will likely be..
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