Ekaterina Zaharieva: As President of the BSEC, Bulgaria Will Rely on a Project-oriented Business Approach
14 November 2018 News
‘I am glad that starting next year Bulgaria will be taking over the presidency of the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation. This stands as one of the most important regional cooperation formats, bringing together EU member states and non-EU countries. We have to make the best possible use of the capacity of the Organisation.’ These were the words of Deputy Prime Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva at a meeting today with the Secretary General of the Permanent International Secretariat of the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC), Mr Michael Christides.
Bulgaria is set to take over the rotating presidency of the Organisation between 1 January and 30 June 2019; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will manage and coordinate the activities implementing its agenda and the priorities set in the latter by the Presidency.
Minister Zaharieva thanked her guest for his cooperation and support in preparing the upcoming Bulgarian presidency. ‘We are looking forward to your presidency; the previous one was very successful. I am certain that, together with Bulgarian experts, we can draw up a calendar of events and meetings which will yield very good results,’ the Secretary General stated.
Ekaterina Zaharieva and Michael Christides were unanimous in saying that there was a need to strengthen the cooperation between the BSEC and the EU through more practical, project-oriented means. ‘I am confident that, as President of the BSEC, we have to focus on fewer, but more specific, topics in order to achieve tangible results,’ Bulgaria’s highest-ranking diplomat stated. Mrs Zaharieva added that Bulgaria would like to use its presidency of the BSEC to lay emphasis on the areas of importance that unite all members of the Organisation, i.e. energy, tourism, culture, etc. ‘We have to concentrate on a more practical, business-oriented approach,’ Bulgaria’s Foreign Affairs Minister highlighted.
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