2024-07-19 11:47:58
“Military Schengen” does not concern the transport infrastructure, which is being built and financed by the EU, but the border procedures for the passage of allied troops through our territory and the easing of these border and customs procedures. This was said by the Acting Minister of Defense Atanas Zapryanov, quoted by BTA. He was heard by the people’s representatives in the plenary hall in connection with the letter of intent to create a corridor for military mobility, which Romania and Bulgaria signed together with Greece at the NATO summit in Washington, called military Schengen.
Zapryanov said that our country’s membership in NATO is the main guarantor of the territorial integrity, political independence and security of the state. The successful implementation of NATO’s deterrence and defense plans depends, among other factors, on pre-existing peacetime national infrastructure and pre-agreed transportation procedures between individual allies, he noted.
Regarding the transport corridors, Zapryanov stated that the agreement refers to the modernization and construction of railway lines, transport arteries in the direction of Kulata – Vidin, Alexandroupolis – Ruse – Silistra.
He pointed out that the military is being asked to set the parameters to be considered in the design of these transport corridors and rail corridors that can also accommodate the transport of troops and defense tonnages.
The movement of cargo and personnel should be ensured by harmonizing, even in peacetime, the conditions for using the corridors defined in the defense plans for the deployment of forces, Zapryanov said. According to him, the main factors hindering the movement of personnel and equipment in Europe are the complex and different national rules for crossing borders, the conditions for information exchange, the lack or insufficiently developed transport infrastructure.
Zapryanov pointed out that the easing of border and customs procedures is done with changes in the national legislation that have been made.
The Trans-European Transport Network is a key tool for planning and developing a coherent, multimodal and high-quality transport infrastructure across the EU. The network includes railways, seaways and ports, connecting urban hubs, airports and terminals, he explained.
Zapryanov noted that Bulgaria is actively working to develop the transport infrastructure and emphasized that it is important for our country to remain active with concrete ideas and actions for further development.
The official minister pointed out that military mobility as an EU initiative aims to ensure the rapid movement of military units and equipment both in peacetime and during crises and conflicts in all strategic directions and with all types of transport. Zapryanov emphasized that it is implemented under the auspices of the European Defense Agency and is also used by the Connecting Europe Mechanism and explained that the mechanism works through targeted investments in transport infrastructure. Zapryanov stated that EUR 1.69 billion is the financing of dual purpose transport infrastructure projects and explained that the financing from the EC is up to 50%, and for EU cohesion policy countries it can reach up to 85%.
Atanas Zapryanov pointed out that the memorandum signed between Bulgaria, Greece and Romania does not have the status of an international treaty according to the Vienna Convention and is a legally non-binding document that aims to express the readiness of the three countries to work towards the creation of a harmonized corridor for military mobility, with the aim of improving the interaction between them. Zapryanov emphasized that this comes down to modernizing the national infrastructure and this will also bring economic benefits.