Bulgarian ambassador: Bridge between Calarasi and Silistra would speed up European security forces' response

    A bridge over the Danube linking the towns of Calarasi (Romania) and Silistra (Bulgaria) would help European security forces have a faster and better response on a larger scale in the event of crises, Bulgarian ambassador to Romania Radko Vlaykov told a conference on Romania's defense in the fourth year of war, the defense industry and the strengthening of Euro-Atlantic alliances, which took place in Bucharest and was livestreamed on the internet, news agency BTA reports."We need to continue discussions on the possibilities of building such a bridge to ensure military mobility, military security. This would be a very good example," the diplomat stressed. He went on to note that Bulgaria and Romania are increasingly cooperating in the security field, but added that all countries in the region should have similar readiness."We are all the Eastern flank. The Eastern flank and the Black Sea region are becoming increasingly important," the ambassador added.He also discussed Turkiye's role in strengthening the resilience of the region and the Black Sea area and brought to mind the Black Sea Security Enhancement Plan presented by the European Commission on May 28 and which includes advancing cooperation with Turkiye, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. The strategy also foresees the further development of the trilateral Black Sea demining initiative of Bulgaria, Romania and Turkiye."In our view, the Black Sea strategy comes at the right time. This is an aspect on which we, the democratic countries of the region, of the Eastern flank, should concentrate. It is very important that we, the EU countries, have more opportunities to cooperate with other countries that are not necessarily in the EU, but are allies within NATO," Vlaykov said.He added that Russia remains a major threat to Euro-Atlantic security."Russia's brutal war of aggression in Ukraine has destroyed the entire European architecture (...) We must not allow the restoration of Russian hegemony in Eastern Europe," the diplomat added and urged politicians to remain united."We must stay together and Putin will never be able to implement his doctrine. The summit in The Hague will show whether we are strong, whether we are efficient, whether we will remain united, because it is expected that the U.S. will reaffirm its commitment to NATO," ambassador Vlaykov concluded. (Photo: https://www.mfa.bg/)