Kristian Vigenin: Conscription is not needed, more investment and social benefits for the army are

“Conscription is not needed. With more investment in defence and attractive social conditions, the Bulgarian army has the capabilities it needs. There is no need to force young people into conscript service.” This was stated by the head of the Delegation of Bulgarian Socialists in the European Parliament Kristian Vigenin on bTV.

The MEP is of the view that investment in defence can create jobs and income, as is happening in Bulgaria, even if on a small scale. “We have to make sure the European defence industry is strong enough to produce enough for our own defence, and stop buying everything from across the ocean, because that way we invest elsewhere. Our strategic autonomy requires us to have a strong defence industry,” he pointed out. Kristian Vigenin emphasised that the question is not how much money is invested in defence, but how well the European Union manages to coordinate its common defence policy: “If we have 27 member states spending more on defence, we will not have more security. Security is much more than armament.”

Listening more and investing in dialogue

The head of the Delegation of Bulgarian Socialists in the European Parliament called for more willingness to listen, to who says what, and if someone feels threatened, for it to be clear that this is a threat to everyone in the community: “It is no accident that during the Cold War, at the time of the greatest confrontation, feeling threatened, both sides found a way to sit down together and adopt the Helsinki Final Act, so that the Cold War did not turn hot. We are at a stage where we have to listen.”

Kristian Vigenin called for investment not only in defence but also in dialogue, because the more armament is acquired, the more the possibility of those weapons being used grows.