Bulgaria and Romania

The evolution of the security and defence reforms in Bulgaria and Romania after the cold-war era includes the elaboration of leading strategic and doctrinal acts, a change from conscript to professional national armies, the implementation of the principles of civil–military relations with the establishment of integrated defence ministries and strong democratic oversight, and the achievement of interoperability in the accession process to NATO and EU membership. Bulgaria and Romania have had a similar process of military transformation and geopolitical reorientation from the East to the West in their common transition to a pluralist democracy. A significant requirement in the process of transformation was the establishment and training of specially qualified mobile forces capable of participating in NATO- or EU-led peace missions. Bulgaria and Romania have also actively contributed to the development of regional defence cooperation in south-eastern Europe by launching various multinational initiatives.