World News | Bulgarian President Declines Government Proposal to Lead Delegation to NATO Summit
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has turned down a government proposal to lead the country's delegation to NATO's July summit in Washington, D.C., saying he was not consulted while it worked out the official position of the country and its commitments regarding the war in Ukraine, his press office said Thursday.
Sofia, Jun 27 (AP) Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has turned down a government proposal to lead the country's delegation to NATO's July summit in Washington, D.C., saying he was not consulted while it worked out the official position of the country and its commitments regarding the war in Ukraine, his press office said Thursday.
The decision comes on the heels of heated debates between pro-Russian and pro-Western parties in Bulgaria about whether Radev, as the commander-in-chief of the military, should represent the country at the NATO summit.
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Radev has often been criticized by political opponents for his Kremlin-friendly position in the aftermath of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and for his public remarks that sending military aid to Kyiv would extend the conflict. He has referred to those favouring military aid to Ukraine as “warmongers.”
Delyan Peevski, who leads a liberal pro-Western party and is one of Radev's harshest critics, called the refusal “a confirmation that Radev's positions serve foreign, not national interests and are subjected to dependencies and ties in the East, contrary to the Euro-Atlantic values and principles”.
Bulgaria, one of Moscow's closest allies during the Cold War era, joined NATO in 2004. Although the presidential post is mostly ceremonial, it provides a strong platform to influence public opinion. Large parts of the country's population of about 6.6 million, surveys show, share pro-Russian sympathies based on historical and cultural bonds between the two nations. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)