Ekaterina Zaharieva visited the KFOR Headquarters and the EU Office in Prishtina
20 October 2017 News
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ekaterina Zaharieva visited the KFOR Headquarters in Prishtina, where she talked to the Bulgarian contingent, as well as the EU Office in Kosovo, which is headed by a Bulgarian diplomat.
Zaharieva is paying a two-day working visit to Kosovo, which is the last leg of her Western Balkan tour.
Major General Giovanni Fungo, the Commander of KFOR (the UN-mandated NATO-led peacekeeping mission), welcomed Deputy Prime Minister Zaharieva at the Headquarters in Prishtina. After she signed the KFOR book of honour, he briefed her on the current situation in the country and the tasks of the military forces entrusted to his command.
Minister Zaharieva also met with the 23-member Bulgarian contingent. The Bulgarian military, who rotate every six months, have the chance of gaining international and military technological experience by working shoulder to shoulder with colleagues of the other NATO armies.
“Wherever there are military missions involving Bulgarians, I hear how dependable you are. You are doing an excellent job of upgrading Bulgaria’s reputation”, Zaharieva said, greeting our soldiers.
“The Bulgarian Government is making sufficient efforts for the contingent’s resourcing. Participation in missions improves Bulgarian officers’ language skills and general knowledge,” said Colonel Krasimir Krastev, Bulgaria’s Deputy Senior National Representative.
Within the framework of her trip, Ekaterina Zaharieva also visited the EU Office in Prishtina.
“Considering that my country places the European perspective of the Western Balkans among its top foreign-policy priorities, I am glad that the EU Office in Kosovo is headed by a Bulgarian lady,” Ekaterina Zaharieva said after her meeting with Nataliya Apostolova, Head of the EU Office and EU Special Representative (EUSR) for Kosovo. This is the highest office ever held by a Bulgarian woman in the EU diplomatic service.
“We are mandated to advise the Government and institutions on how to make progress along the European path. We are engaged in all spheres of life, and the EULEX mission is especially active assisting the judiciary and the law-enforcement authorities, we advise the Government and institutions in various areas,” said Nataliya Apostolova. She and her team briefed Zaharieva on the situation in Kosovo. The priorities of the EU Office in Kosovo include the rule of law, education and the economy.
EULEX, the EU rule-of-law mission in Kosovo, also has many Bulgarians on its staff.
By 15 October 2017, EULEX employed 40 Bulgarians, of whom 15 were posted Bulgarian experts and 25 were contracted by the Mission in their individual capacity. EULEX is instrumental in strengthening the rule of law and the gradual shifting of administration of justice responsibilities to the Kosovo judicial authorities.
Another Bulgarian, Ekaterina Trendafilova, is President of the recently established Specialist Chambers of the Kosovo Relocated Specialist Judicial Institution (KRSJI).
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