Meetings of Minister Daniel Mitov at the US Department of State and the Department of Defense
30 July 2016 News
Minister Daniel Mitov held meetings at the Department of State and the Department of Defense in the concluding part of his visit to the USA.
Minister Mitov and Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed cooperation in the field of defense, the process of modernization of the Bulgarian armed forces and the results of the NATO Summit in Warsaw. The talks focused on the implementation of key energy projects in the region and acceleration of the process of building the interconnector with Greece and the liquefied natural gas terminal near Alexandroupolis.
The American side reaffirmed the commitment to continued US support for securing NATO’s Eastern flank and the implementation of key energy diversification projects. A positive evaluation was given of the progress of reforms in the judiciary and the adopted new legislation in the fight against corruption. The need of effective implementation of the newly adopted laws was emphasized.
In addition, Minister Mitov and Deputy Secretary of State Blinken discussed the challenges arising from the disturbed balance of forces in the Black Sea and the conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa.
Minister Mitov discussed with the Under Secretary of Defense Brian McKeon the outcomes of the NATO Summit in Warsaw, the implementation of NATO’s Readiness Action Plan and the US Initiative for strengthening the security of Europe, as well as the opportunities for strengthening the security in the Black Sea under the auspices of the Alliance. They outlined ways of reinforcing the bilateral defense cooperation and the progress of modernization of the Bulgarian armed forces. They discussed also the risks for security stemming from the areas of instability in Europe and the Middle East.
The Bulgarian Foreign Minister took part in a public event of the GMF's Transatlantic Talks series entitled: “Europe After the NATO Warsaw Summit”. The discussion focused on the outcomes of the Summit, the need of unity in the Alliance and ways of coping with different crises in the world. Emphasis was also placed on strengthening the security in Eastern Europe. As outcomes of the NATO Summit, Minister Mitov highlighted the achieved political consensus on strengthening NATO’s Eastern flank, the reaffirmed commitment to the Open Door Policy, the agreement on strengthening security in all fields, including cyberspace, the signed Joint Declaration on EU-NATO cooperation.
Minister Mitov took part also in a Heritage Foundation roundtable. The topics of discussion included challenges to security in Eastern Europe, the need of strengthening the capabilities in the Black Sea region, the ways to counter the ISIS threat and the energy security.
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