News - Switzerland, Geneva, Permanent Representation of the Republic of Bulgaria

The Permanent Representative of the Republic of Bulgaria to the United Nations Office and other international organizations in Geneva, and Head of the Bulgarian delegation, Ambassador Angel Bandjov, took part in the High-Level Segment of the 2026 session of the Conference on Disarmament, under the presidency of the Kingdom of Morocco. This important event was attended by Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Ministers, Permanent Representatives and other high-ranking government officials, who made personal or pre-recorded video statements. The High-Level Segment was also addressed on the first day by the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The High-Level Segment coincided with the fourth anniversary of Russian federation’s full-scale military aggression against Ukraine. On this occasion, a joint statement on behalf of 41 countries, including Bulgaria, made the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Norway.

In his statement, Ambassador Angel Bandjov, on behalf of the Republic of Bulgaria, stressed the firm support to multilateralism, to the central role of the UN in disarmament and non-proliferation and to the Conference on Disarmament, as the single multilateral disarmament negotiating forum of the international community. Upholding the rules-based international order is more important now than it has been ever before. By invading Ukraine, in flagrant violation of international law and the UN Charter, the Russian Federation has also severely undermined the efforts in the field of arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation. Against the backdrop of current challenges, there is an urgent need of positive developments, notably in the framework of the Conference on Disarmament. Bulgaria will continue to work towards improving and modernizing the disarmament machinery.