Minister of Defense Dragan Krapović is on a two-day official visit to the Republic of Bulgaria.
On the first day of the visit, Krapović met with the Minister of Defense of Bulgaria, Atanas Zapryanov.
As announced by the Ministry of Defense, Krapović expressed gratitude for the support that Bulgaria provides to Montenegro in the European integration process and added that the encouraging messages coming from the highest EU addresses regarding membership by 2028 are of exceptional importance for Montenegro.
"In the context of global security developments, the Minister emphasized that NATO has demonstrated its ability to adapt to new challenges and the changed security architecture resulting from the Russian aggression against Ukraine in 2022. He pointed out the importance of strengthening deterrence and defense, emphasizing that multinational battle groups, one of which is deployed in Bulgaria and within which a contingent of the Army of Montenegro is deployed, play a key role in strengthening the eastern wing of the Alliance," it was announced.
Speaking about the Western Balkans, Krapović emphasized the importance of the continued engagement of international organizations, especially NATO and the EU, whose commitment to regional stability also contributes to the security of the wider Euro-Atlantic area.
"The Minister of Defense of the Republic of Bulgaria referred to the strategic importance of the Black Sea region for the broader European and international security environment, emphasizing that a unified approach is needed in addressing the challenges in this area. The interlocutors confirmed their commitment to implementing the decisions of the Hague Summit and agreed that a gradual increase in defense spending is necessary, as a key element for strengthening the capabilities and resilience of the Alliance member states," the statement reads.
The ministers also discussed possibilities for improving bilateral cooperation in the field of defense and expressed their willingness to invest additional efforts in that direction.
"As part of his official visit to the Republic of Bulgaria, the Minister of Defense visited the Military Academy "GS Rakovski" in Sofia and on that occasion held a lecture for the academy's students, during which he presented the security and defense priorities of Montenegro. Minister Krapović also visited the NATO Center of Excellence for Crisis Management and Disaster Response and met with the Director of the Center, Colonel Orlin Nikolov," the statement reads.
The Chief of the General Staff of the Army of Montenegro, Brigadier General Miodrag Vuksanović, is also part of the Ministry of Defense delegation visiting Bulgaria.
Bonus video:
