Nickolay Mladenov: The events in the Middle East are the greatest historical change since the fall of the Berlin Wall
14 April 2011 News
"The events in the Middle East are the greatest historical change since the fall of the Berlin Wall," the Bulgarian Foreign Minister announced at the informal meeting of NATO`s foreign ministers in Berlin. The first session of the Council was devoted to the situation in Libya and the actions of the Alliance. The Bulgarian Foreign Minister welcomed the participation in the meeting of the state-partners of NATO in Libya - Qatar, Morocco, Sweden, Jordan, Ukraine and the UAE, stressing their contribution in previous important operations of the Alliance, as well.
"The events in the Middle East clearly show the desire of the people to live freely, to participate actively in the governance of their countries and have more opportunities for economic growth," Nickolay Mladenov said. Bulgaria's top diplomat informed his colleagues about his recent visit to Syria and Yemen. He also expressed his strong concern about the situation in both countries.
"Bulgaria will contribute to NATO's operation for enforcing an arms embargo against Libya and will restore its consulate in Benghazi soon," Nickolay Mladenov said. He reminded the efforts of Bulgaria to evacuate hundreds of Egyptian citizens from the Libyan-Tunisian border. "We should take into consideration the fact that our actions in Libya affect directly the situation in Syria and Yemen," the Bulgarian Foreign Minister said in conclusion.
The forum continues with a meeting of the North Atlantic Council in ISAF format. Later today Minister Mladenov will hold talks with his New Zealand counterpart Murray McCully.