Ekaterina Zaharieva, the Bulgarian candidate for the post of European Commissioner for Start-ups, Research and Innovation, expressed her support for increased funding in the field of defense innovation during her hearing in the European Parliament.
Responding to a question by Bulgarian MEP Petar Volgin, Zaharieva emphasized that Europe's security depends on Ukraine's victory in the ongoing war. She believes that resources allocated to support Ukraine are not wasted but rather an investment in Europe's own security.
Zaharieva highlighted the importance of Europe's intellectual capital, stating that the continent's 2 million "smart people" make it a global force in research. If appointed, she outlined her priorities as an action plan for women in innovation, start-ups, and science, the promotion of artificial intelligence in science, the creation of an AI research council, and achieving a 3% of EU GDP investment in innovation and research.