Vigenin: Messages of peace should come from the European Union

“The European Union was created as a union of peace, it was created as a negation of war. I would like our messages to the world to put the emphasis on peace, rather than joining the general chorus about arming ourselves. We undoubtedly have to respond to the global challenges by showing that we have the resources to defend ourselves.” This was stated by Bulgarian MEP from the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament Kristian Vigenin on “The Day” on Darik radio.

He noted that when the world is becoming an ever more insecure place and there is talk of weapons, Europe has to have the capabilities to respond to aggression, but as a way of protecting its security: “If we are strong enough as a union, nobody would think of attacking us, because we can respond. That is the effort of the EU at the moment, to be in a position to guarantee our own security and defence. We should not rely on anyone else, because the United States defends its own interest and it does not always coincide with ours. We, as a union, have to formulate our interest and invest in our own strength.”

Kristian Vigenin considers the EU policy of committing mainly to financial and military support for Ukraine to be one that does not work. In his view a more strategic approach is, alongside that, to support Ukraine in negotiating peace. “The EU still has no plan for peace. If we accept Trump talking to Putin, why then do we not do it ourselves? It is not enough to think about more and more weapons, a dialogue has to be held with the Russian side both on settling the current conflict and on seeking a broader view of the security architecture in Europe, because Russia will remain our neighbour after this war too,” is the MEP view.

On the visit of the delegation led by the deputy prime minister and BSP leader Atanas Zafirov to China, Kristian Vigenin finds the reactions on the subject overblown. “The European Union maintains active relations with China. Ursula von der Leyen herself and the president of the European Council Antonio Costa were in Beijing in July. This year marks 50 years of EU-China diplomatic relations. This visit by Atanas Zafirov and the delegation gains Bulgaria a presence in the modern world. There are many important and global topics on which it is important to talk to China,” the MEP commented. In his view it is important to extend a hand to countries that are not so close as well: “The new world order is being born before our eyes and there is no way to pretend it is not happening. Will we stand and watch someone else create the new world order, or will we take an active part in shaping it, defending our principles and interests?” he asked rhetorically.

Kristian Vigenin emphasised that the place of Bulgaria as part of the EU is not being called into question: “I would like our country to make a more active contribution to shaping European Union policies, but that does not mean we cannot have positions, or even criticise, in the interest of a better future for the continent, for example on what can be done in relations with China and with Russia. BSP is a European party, but that does not mean saying yes to every policy, we can make proposals so that the Union becomes stronger.”

On the Russian drones that entered Polish airspace, Kristian Vigenin called for a calm approach to the situation, because it is important to make sure this does not happen again. He warned that because of the still continuing conflict in Ukraine there may be such situations and we could end up in a severe situation if someone nerves fail. According to Vigenin, the work on guaranteeing the security of the territory and airspace of European Union member states has to be speeded up. He sees the case as one more argument in support of the efforts to seek peace.