NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte will visit the “Novo Selo” training ground. on December 19, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced.
Rute will meet with the Acting Minister of Defense Atanas Zapryanov, the political and military leadership of the Ministry of Defense and will learn about the activities of the multinational battle group with the framework country Italy, which our country hosts.
Mark Rutte and Atanas Zapryanov are expected to make statements to the media representatives at the “Novo Selo” test site.
Strengthening NATO's defense capacity in the current complex security environment, the war in Ukraine and aid to Kiev, the complex situation in the Black Sea region, were discussed at a meeting in Brussels by Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Ivan Kondov and Secretary General of the Alliance Mark Rutte , reported the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA).
The importance of the construction of the transport corridors in ensuring the defense capabilities of NATO's area of responsibility in South-Eastern Europe was confirmed.
Mark Rutte gave a high assessment of the efforts made by Bulgaria in the field of defense, the announcement also states.
At the end of May 2024, former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also visited Bulgaria. He was in Sofia during the spring session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Alliance.
Bulgaria is valued as a reliable ally in NATO. We highly value what Bulgaria has done during the twenty-year membership in terms of collective defense and shared security, Jens Stoltenberg said then, BTA recalls.