Europe should seek dialogue with Russia in order to end the war in Ukraine, and Bulgaria should not draw hasty conclusions about the attacks on vessels in the Black Sea. This was stated by the representative of "Progressive Bulgaria" Anton Kutev in the program "120 minutes".
The reason for his comment was the position of the European Council, in which Russia is named as the perpetrator of drone attacks against civilian and commercial vessels in the exclusive economic zones of Bulgaria and Romania. Kutev said that the political position should not exclude the need to collect evidence.
„We have repeatedly said that what we want first is to establish the data and then announce it“, Kutev pointed out.Kutev: Bulgaria must defend its interests in the EU and NATO
According to Kutev, Bulgaria cannot expect its security to be guaranteed outside the alliances in which it is a member. He defined NATO as the main guarantor of the country's security and stated that membership in the Alliance remains a key part of the national security doctrine.
However, this does not mean that Sofia should give up its own positions, he emphasized.
„However, this does not mean that within NATO and the European Union we should not defend our national interests. On the contrary, it means exactly the opposite“, said Kutev.He also commented on Daniel Mitov's criticism of differences between Prime Minister Radev's public positions before European partners and before Bulgarian society. Kutev disagreed with this assessment and stated that public speaking in the EU is carefully refined.
Dialogue with Moscow must be European
Kutev stated that he could not assess whether the Bulgarian Prime Minister should immediately talk to Vladimir Putin about the attacks in the Black Sea and the war in Ukraine. According to him, however, any possible conversation should be coordinated with the European institutions and held when the European Union is ready to start negotiations.
According to him, the desire for dialogue does not mean approval of Russian aggression or denial of responsibility for the war. He believes that support for Ukraine and the search for a diplomatic solution can go hand in hand.
„In order to end the war, like any war, one must sit at the negotiating table and in these negotiations, in some way, someone must talk“, commented Kutev.Warning about expanding the conflict
The representative of „Progressive Bulgaria“ stated that Europe should increase investments in defense, but this should not be at the expense of science, social policies and cohesion. According to him, the weakening of these areas could increase public discontent in European countries.
Kutev defined the attacks on vessels and incidents with drones as a sign of increased risk in the Black Sea region.
„We are already one step away from expanding this conflict“, he warned.He added that Bulgaria could help start a diplomatic process, but should not act unilaterally. According to him, this outcome will not be achieved with silence, but with coordinated dialogue.
Sources: btvnovinite.bg