Paris, 4 June 2007 - Mr Georgi Pirinski, Speaker of the Bulgarian Parliament, declared in Paris on Monday that Bulgaria, a member of the EU of six months standing, would remain “actively committed” to implementing the common security and defence policy.

Speaking before the WEU Assembly, Mr Pirinski recalled that in recent years Bulgaria had already decided on 15 occasions to send Bulgarian troops on missions abroad. Engaged in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Bulgaria is also taking part in the EU Operation Althea in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is involved in five NATO missions (Iraq, Afghanistan, Kosovo, the Mediterranean, Response Force) and four UN missions (Lebanon, Kosovo, Liberia and Eritrea). The contingent mobilised in Afghanistan should soon be increased by 400 troops. According to Mr Pirinski, “Bulgaria is classed, in relation to its population, among the leading countries taking part in external missions”.

Mr Pirinski added that in spite of its “social and economic difficulties” Bulgaria was making “significant commitments” to restructuring and upgrading its armed forces and is currently allocating 2.24% of its GDP to defence, a percentage that will be raised to 2.6% in 2015. In the area of civil crisis management, Bulgaria is ready to take part in future missions in the “Police” and “Rule of law” sectors in Kosovo and Afghanistan.

Mr Pirinski finally stressed the need for “parliamentary scrutiny” of the ESDP, as “national parliaments vote on and adopt their country´s defence budgets and take the final decision on sending troops on missions abroad”. The WEU Assembly, he added, ensures “optimal cooperation and coordination among national parliaments. It carries out extremely important analytical work and holds useful discussions on key issues in the area of security and defence”.