Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev on Wednesday warned that Russia was out to "destroy" the European Union as the Ukraine crisis ushered in an era of "Cold Peace". Staunchly pro-EU, Plevneliev told the European Parliament that the Ukraine crisis showed that Russia "does not support the principles of international order." "The Kremlin is opposing us and trying to destabilise the EU... It is trying to destroy and bring down the foundations of the European Union which are unity, solidarity and rule of law," he told the assembly in the eastern French city of Strasbourg.
Bulgaria was behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War stand-off between the Soviet Union and the West but after the fall of communism, it charted its own course and joined the EU in 2007. Plevneliev said he hoped there would be no new Cold War but the Russian actions in Ukraine had brought about "a time of Cold Peace" where no one wants war but where there was still conflict and confrontation.
He also warned against accepting Russia's intervention in Ukraine, and especially its annexation of Crimea, as a done deal in the pursuit of other interests with Moscow. "If the West allows this, it will be a historic shame," Plevneliev said, adding: "For me, for us, Crimea is Ukraine and Ukraine is Europe!"