Bulgarian President claims Ukraine "insists on war" with Europe "paying for everything"
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has claimed that Ukraine "insists on waging war" against Russia and that Europe is allegedly paying for all of this.
Source: European Pravda, citing Bulgarian Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Quote from Radev: "Ukraine insists on carrying on with this war, but the whole of Europe is paying the bills."
Details: This is a new statement made by the head of state regarding the war. Up until now, Radev has urged Bulgaria to maintain a position of "neutrality".
Radev has been advocating positions close to those of the Kremlin since the beginning of the Russian invasion. He often uses the word "conflict" instead of "war", saying he opposes providing weapons to defend Kyiv. The official also opposes economic sanctions against Russia.
Radev has been advocating for talks between Kyiv and Moscow and a peaceful resolution to the war. The last time this happened was during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's visit to Sofia earlier this month. Then Zelenskyy stood by Kyiv's position that the war had no peaceful solution. One of Ukraine's main demands for peace is the complete withdrawal of Russian troops from all occupied Ukrainian territories, which Russia refuses to do.
"Our leaders are frantically trying to convince us that by sending military aid, they are, on the contrary, increasing our security. This conflict is growing worse, with more and more victims," Radev said.
Bulgaria, a member of NATO and the European Union, has sent military aid to Ukraine twice. The first batch was sent by the Radev-appointed interim government, obliged to do so by a decision of the National Assembly [Bulgarian parliament].
Bulgaria's Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov commented on Radev's latest allegations, stating that "the Russian Federation is the most significant and direct threat to the security of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation member states, as well as to peace and stability in the Euro-Atlantic area."
Quote from Denkov: "My question is when did our president have his opinion – when he signed these quotes, or when today he repeats some Russian claims that have nothing to do with what the EU and NATO members present as a position.
Bulgaria's national interest is to end the war, for Russia to withdraw its troops from Ukraine, for Ukraine to become a NATO member and for us to build up our defence capabilities in full compliance with the regional plans that NATO adopted in Vilnius."
More details: The Ukrainian embassy in Sofia also rejected Radev's allegations. The diplomats stressed that Ukraine wants peace and is making every effort to achieve it.
"Accusing Ukraine, which has been treacherously attacked by its northern neighbour, of the ongoing war is one of the most common theses supporting Russian propaganda and hybrid warfare in Europe," the statement said.
The embassy stressed that providing Ukraine with defence assets does not increase the number of casualties and destruction but rather saves more lives of ordinary citizens.
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