Bulgaria’s President: This Conflict has no Military Solution - Zelensky: This is not a Conflict but War!

In front of the Ukrainian president, his Bulgarian colleague Rumen Radev described the war in Ukraine, repeatedly calling it a "conflict" (and in most cases avoiding the word "war"). Later, Zelensky - who noticed what words his colleague chooses - added: "This is definitely a war."

In the opening words during their meeting, the Bulgarian head of state explained to Volodymyr Zelenski that "the conflict is expanding its spatial size, acquiring new dimensions", that "the hostilities are becoming more and more fierce, more and more people are dying, including representatives of the Bulgarian community". - a sensitive topic for Bulgaria, including "what is happening at the Zaporizhzhia NPP".

According to him, what is happening is turning into a "war of attrition", "a global economic clash that affects the economy not only of Ukraine, but also of all countries and increases social tension".

Radev made it clear that he feared for the reserves of the Bulgarian armed forces. In addition, "I continue to maintain that this conflict has no military solution, and more and more weapons will not solve it." He called for "paying attention to the consistent effort to de-escalate, to cease fire and to seek a peaceful solution through the means of diplomacy". "I know how difficult it is, but we must work (...), especially in light of the deep historical and cultural ties between our peoples."

In response to some of Zelensky's comments, Radev subsequently emphasized Bulgaria's support for Ukrainian European integration. "My appeal is that right now we are hearing the word victory, victory ... we would like to hear more and the word 'peace' and the leading effort should be...