Nickolay Mladenov: Let’s support the historic changes in the Arab world
29 April 2011 NewsOn 28 April 2011 the Foreign Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria Nickolay Mladenov was a guest of honor at the annual meeting of the American Jewish Committee – AJC Global Forum 2011, in Washington. Nearly 1500 guests from all over the world participated in the forum.
In his address to the forum Minister Mladenov compared the current changes in the Middle East with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the changes in Central and Eastern Europe emphasizing that it is a historic revolution of the Arab dignity and self-respect. The nations of the Middle East, from Cairo to Tripoli, are fighting corruption, unemployment among young people, poverty and want to participate in the government of their countries in order to build a fairer future for everybody, Minister Mladenov pointed out. The European Union, NATO, the Council of Europe must help the building of partnerships in different areas of social life, Nickolay Mladenov said. In order to offer to our southern neighbors the lessons we’ve learned during the transition of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, on the 5th and 6th of May MFA organizes the first of a series of international forums, where the possibilities of helping the processes in the Middle East will be discussed, Minister Mladenov concluded.
You can download Minister Mladenov’s speech in English here.
Apart from Nickolay Mladenov’s speech there were also statements by the President of Panama Ricardo Martinelli – he was awarded the AJC Prize Light Unto the Nations; the Chief of Staff to Barack Obama William Daley; the Minister of Defence of Germany Thomas de Maizière.