Top EU and US diplomats Agree on Close Cooperation in Combating the Coronavirus and Disinformation
15 June 2020 News
The foreign ministers of the EU, including Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ekaterina Zaharieva, and US Secretary of State Michael Pompeo agreed to maintain the trans-Atlantic partnership that is based on shared values by cooperating closely in the fight against the Coronavirus, disinformation and in other spheres of common interest.
“The EU and the United States share common values and principles. Today’s discussion was very important because we are sending a strong signal about the importance of our trans-Atlantic partnership and are improving mutual understanding on many issues,” Ekaterina Zaharieva said at the Foreign Affairs Council that was held via a video conference. Michael Pompeo joined the conference. This was the first Foreign Affairs Council with the participation of a US Secretary of State since December 2017.
The European Foreign Affairs Ministers and the US Secretary of State asserted the strategic importance of their trans-Atlantic partnership and unity and the benefits of the partnership between the EU and the United States. The importance of the measures for overcoming the pandemic’s consequences was emphasized.
Relations with China and Turkey were featured on the agenda for talks with Pompeo, as were the Middle East peace process and developments in the Eastern Neighborhood, with emphasis being laid on the situation in the Ukraine. Referring to cooperation with the Western Balkans countries, Bulgaria’s Foreign Affairs Minister urged the EU and the United States to join their efforts and to work in close cooperation in support of the European integration of the region’s six countries.