There are no plans for direct intervention of NATO troops, there are no plans for NATO to become party to the conflict in Ukraine. Bulgaria is about to achieve investments of 2% and more in defense, as 23 other NATO allies have done so far.
This was said by the US ambassador to our country, Kenneth Merten, during a conference in Sofia on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the founding of NATO, organized by the Atlantic Club in Bulgaria, BTA recalled.
The diplomat explained that the support for Ukraine through military aid, training and other means is to ensure that Ukraine can defend itself so that the conflict does not escalate beyond its borders.
The US ambassador noted that after the start of the conflict in Ukraine, Bulgaria stepped up and agreed to host a multinational battle group.
NATO is the only structure capable of protecting our collective security, said Kenneth Merten and noted the contribution that Bulgaria makes in the Black Sea region and the eastern flank of the alliance.
According to Merten, thanks to the security provided by NATO, Bulgaria is flourishing. He presented data according to which, since our country's accession to the alliance, the GDP has more than doubled, foreign direct investments continue to grow, as m.y. the increase was 45% - up to 3.9 billion dollars. Kenneth Merten added that a few weeks ago the World Bank qualified Bulgaria for the first time as a country with high incomes. The ambassador added that according to Eurostat, Bulgaria has overtaken Hungary in terms of per capita consumption.
The ambassador reported that Bulgaria is on its way to achieving investments of 2% and more in defense, as 23 other NATO allies have done so far.