8th Sep 2025
The Minister of the Interior participated alongside NATO Deputy Secretary General Radmila Shekerinska in the opening of the emergency management exercise "BULGARIA 2025"
The exercise focuses on responding to natural disasters and industrial accidents, hybrid threats, and complex emergencies.
"It is an honor and a responsibility for Bulgaria to organize the largest civil protection exercise within NATO, in which we will train our response to crises," said Interior Minister Daniel Mitov. Participants in the large-scale exercise will also test procedures related to logistical support for receiving international assistance.
The goal is that approximately 1,200 representatives, from over 40 countries and organizations, train in conditions close to real life. A huge amount of work lies ahead, which will focus on providing answers in crises—an earthquake, terrorist attack, technological failure, and other scenarios will be simulated. The readiness of Bulgaria and the Alliance to respond to natural disasters and other challenges will be tested, and conclusions will be drawn on how to save human lives more effectively.
BULGARIA 2025 is jointly organized by the General Directorate Fire Safety and Civil Protection – Ministry of Interior, NATO's Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Center (EADRCC), and NATO's Center of Excellence for Crisis Management and Disaster Response (CMDR COE) in Bulgaria.