The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, visited the largest state-owned military enterprise in Bulgaria – “Vazov Machine-Building Works” (VMZ) EAD, which operates under the Ministry of Economy and Industry
Ursula von der Leyen paid a one-day visit to Bulgaria as part of her tour of the countries along the eastern border of the EU – Latvia, Finland, Estonia, Poland, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Romania. The delegation also included the Commissioner for Defence, Andrius Kubilius.
The Executive Director of VMZ, Engineer Ivan Getsov, acquainted the President of the European Commission with the current production and the capacity of the state enterprise.
At VMZ Sopot, the President of the European Commission held a meeting with Prime Minister Rossen Jeliazkov, Minister of Economy and Industry Peter Dilov, Minister of Defence Atanas Zaprianov, and the leader of the largest parliamentary party, Boyko Borissov. The talks focused on the plant’s potential for modernisation and the development of new production in the context of Bulgaria’s contribution to pan-European security and defence. The development of the Bulgarian defence industry and the forthcoming joint venture between VMZ and Rheinmetall were also discussed
It was announced that two new factories will be built, creating nearly 1,000 jobs – one for the production of energetic materials and charges, and another for the production of 155 mm NATO – standard ammunition.
Von der Leyen also presented the European instrument “Safe”, which allocates EUR 150 billion for joint projects in the field of defence.