Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mitov Meets with ASEAN Secretary General Le Luong Minh
Jakarta, March 31 (BTA) – Bulgarian Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov was received by Le Luong Minh, Secretary General of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the Indonesian capital.
Mitov hailed the active efforts of the Vietnamese diplomat as the organization’s Secretary General (2013-2017), which are evidence of Vietnam’s active role in ASEAN, the Foreign Ministry said. The two discussed EU-ASEAN cooperation and matters on the international agenda. More…
Croatian President Grabar-Kitarovic Pays Official Visit to Bulgaria
Sofia, March 31 (BTA) – The development of bilateral relations, regional cooperation, energy security and migration were among the topics discussed here on Thursday between Prime Minister Boyko Borissov and Croatia’s President Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, who is on an official visit to Bulgaria, Cabinet’s Press Service reported.
The two also discussed security issues and the Euro-Atlantic integration of the countries from the Western Balkans.
Borissov and the Croatian President agreed that migration causes common problems and a lasting solution can be found only through joint efforts of all countries that are affected or exposed to risk. More…
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mitov’s Visit to Indonesia Continues
Jakarta/Sofia, March 30 (BTA) – Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov had official meetings with Indonesian President Joko Widodo and his Indonesian counterpart, Foreign Minister Retno Marsurdi, Mitov’s ministry said on Wednesday.
Mitov is paying an official visit to Malaysia and Indonesia in the period March 28-31. His official visit to Jakarta coincides with the marking of 60 years from the establishment of diplomatic relations between Bulgaria and Indonesia. This is the first visit of a Bulgarian Foreign Minister to Indonesia after 1965. The last one was made by Minister Ivan Bashev in 1965 and Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas visited Bulgaria in 1994. More…
IOM Awards Bulgarian President for Commitment to Humanitarian Issues
Sofia, March 29 (BTA) – The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has awarded President Rosen Plevneliev for his exceptional commitment to humanitarian issues, Plevneliev’s press secretariat said.
The distinction is given for Plevneliev’s positions in respect of the situation with migration in Europe. More…
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mitov Confers with Malaysian Counterpart Anifah Aman in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur/Sofia, March 29 (BTA) – Bulgarian Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov conferred with his Malaysian counterpart Anifah Aman, Mitov’s Ministry said in a press release on Tuesday. “The relations between Bulgaria and Malaysia can be further developed and expanded in the context of Bulgaria’s membership in the EU, under the increased partnership between EU and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) and other multilateral formats,” Mitov said at the meeting.More…
Bulgaria, Malaysia Sign Memorandum of Cooperation in Legal Sphere
Sofia, March 28 (BTA) – Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding and Cooperation on Legal Affairs between the governments of Bulgaria and Malaysia, Mitov’s ministry said.
Mitov is on an official visit to Malaysia from March 28 to 31. This is the first visit of a Bulgarian foreign minister to the country in the history of the bilateral relations. More…
Ukraine’s European Perspective Will Promote Stability and Economic Growth – Bulgarian President
Kiev, March 27 (BTA) – The implementation of Ukraine’s European perspective will create possibilities for achieving lasting stability and sustainable economic growth, Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev said here on Saturday. Plevneliev had talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko. The Bulgarian head of State confirmed Bulgaria’s support for Ukraine’s association with the EU and approximation to NATO, the President’s Press Secretariat said.
Bulgaria will keep on withstanding its principled position of observing the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine, Plevneliev stressed. He urged for peaceful settlement of the conflict in Eastern Ukraine.
Plevneliev was also presented with the Person of the Year – 2015 award of Ukraine for his public and political activity on the European and international plain and for his contribution to the strengthening of Ukraine’s relations with the international community. More…
PM Ciolos: Terrorist risk under control in Romania, many might reconsider migration
Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos admits there is a potential risk of terrorism in Romania, but claims that intelligence services have things under control.
In an interview broadcasted on Sunday by the private station Pro TV, Ciolos asserted that the relevant authorities are highly vigilant, but request adequate instruments to monitor the situation. He specifically mentioned the need for a better control of sales of prepaid mobile phone cards. According to him, Romania is among the few European states where no customer identification is necessary to buy such cards.
“I understand that there prepaid cards from Romania have been used to prepare attacks in other places in the European Union, precisely because of this flexibility in Romania,” the prime minister said.
Also in the context of the terrorist attacks in Brussels, Ciolos reminded Romania’s consistent stance against mandatory quotas of migrants. “I think even those who were very open are now more circumspect about migration — Germany or the Nordic countries. (…) It was understood — I think perhaps at the last minute — that we cannot talk about solidarity without a control of illegal migration,” he said. More…
Romanian Ambassador to U.S. Maior wants to develop economic relations between Romania, U.S.
Romanian Ambassador to the U.S., George Maior said that drawing investment and developing economic relations between Romania and the U.S. represent the priorities of his term.
Ambassador George Maior participated on Thursday along with U.S. Ambassador in Bucharest, Hans G. Klemm, in a Washington-held roundtable meeting organized by the American-Romanian Business Council.
According to a Friday’s release for AGERPRES, the Romanian ambassador reiterated Bucharest’s commitment for improving the business environment and said that “the support extended by the U.S. Trade Department in developing the action plan and, more recently, the interest in the project of setting up an agency for foreign investment demonstrate the commitment and the importance that the U.S. grants to the relationship with Romania.”
Participating in the event were a number of member companies of the said council, including ADM, Cargill, Textron, ExxonMobil, Parsons, Amerocap, Lockheed Martin, Coca Cola, Amgen and MetLife the release mentions.
The representatives of the companies participating in the meeting “showed interest in contributing further to deepening the trade between Romania and the U.S., and appreciated the openness of Romanian institutions, and reiterated the need to continue governmental policies in terms of fiscal stability and of investment climate,” reads the cited source. More…
Significant achievement that both sides embrace a genuinely European solution, Eide says
UN Secretary General`s Special Adviser on Cyprus Espen Barth Eide believes that the fact that both sides have embraced the importance of making this a genuinely European solution is one of the very significant achievements in this round of Cyprus reunification talks.
Replying to questions after a meeting with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci, in Turkish occupied Nicosia, he said next week’s visit to Cyprus by European Parliament President Martin Schultz is a “very good sign,” adding that EU institutions are showing significant interest and massive support to the negotiating process.
“The prospect of a possible settlement in Cyprus is very – very important to Brussels and to Europe,” he stressed.
According to Eide he is “constantly asked by my counterparts in Brussels as to what they can do to help.”
As you know, he noted, “there is a significant involvement of EU institutions, the Commission, the European Central Bank helping the sides in preparing for the European nature of the settlement that we are seeking here.”
“I think that one of the very significant achievements in this round of talks is that both sides have embraced and strongly underlined the importance of making this a genuinely European solution”, he stressed.
He pointed out that such a solution “is good for both sides; it is good for Turkish Cypriots and it is good for Greek Cypriots because there are many aspects to the European set of principles and values and acquis including many that protect that group which is not a majority.” So this is good news, he added.
Referring to Schultz`s visit to the island, he said “we will all meet with Schultz and make sure that he has a good picture of the real state of affairs and where we are in the talks, the progress made and also all the remaining issues.”
He described the European official “a committed supporter to the Cyprus process” and expressed his conviction that while on the island he will make sure he expresses in a practical, hands on way, concrete support from Europe.
In his introductory statement after his meeting with Akinci, Eide said that it was very constructive and recalled that “we are planning the leaders` meeting which will be held on Monday morning.”
“We are now in a very crucial phase where we are predominantly working on looking into some of the understandings that have evolved over these many months and trying to convert the understandings into clear language,” he said.
Because, as he explained, “there may be political agreement achieved between the leaders under which we don`t have all the details and some times, the crux lies in the details. So that is very much the work we are doing now.”
Eide also said “the process is moving forward as it should”. He also said that “the political cycle of the Greek Cypriot side is not intervening in a negative sense.”
“I think many people have asked that question and my sense is that both leaders are committed to continuing to talk through and beyond that period and we have a long agenda of issues to discuss when we meet on Monday morning”, he added.
On his part Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci said that his meeting with Eide focused on energy matters, the Cyprus talks and how to move forward, and difficulties in the process underway for the traditional Cypriot cheese halloumi to receive Protected Designation of Origin status.
Cyprus has been divided since 1974 when Turkey invaded and occupied its northern third. UN backed talks resumed in May 2015 aiming to reunite the island under a federal roof.
CNA/EPH/MM/2016
ENDS, CYPRUS NEWS AGENCY