Former Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev recently spoke to students and alumni at the American University in Bulgaria (AUBG), emphasizing the qualities inherent in good leadership and how global leaders can address the current issues.

“A strong leader is one who really understands the importance of building and bringing sustainable solutions,” Plevneliev said, according to a press release.

Plevneliev visited AUBG as part of the school’s Leadership Series, talking to current and former executive MBA students at the Elieff Center in Sofia. He characterized the current geopolitical state as a “cold peace” and called for further integration among nations, which he considers the key to a more sustainable peace. Through integration, war becomes more and more unattractive to leaders and the countries they represent, leading to sustainable conflict resolution and multi-lateral solutions, he said.

Plevneliev emphasized that strong leaders work to promote democracy, increase the freedom of those in their country and foster higher levels of education within their citizenship. He told the AUBG community that a country’s success should be measured based on how successful its ordinary citizens are.

“I was a president. I was a minister. I was a manager. I have seen a lot. I have done a lot, and I just want to share,” Plevneliev said.  “It is only by sharing – coming together – that we could be efficient.”