site.btaGovernments of Bulgaria, Macedonia Hold First Joint Meeting

Strumica, November 23 (BTA correspondent Antoan Nikolov) - The governments of Bulgaria and Macedonia are holding their first joint meeting in the Macedonian town of Strumica on Thursday. Ahead of the meeting, Prime Ministers Boyko Borissov and Zoran Zaev had a one-on-one discussion in the Vodoca monastery and laid wreathes to the monument of Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski (1999-2004).

Participating on Bulgaria's side are Deputy Prime Ministers Tomislav Donchev, Krassimir Karakachanov and Ekaterina Zaharieva, as well as Interior Minister Valentin Radev, Regional Development Minister Nikolai Nankov, Environment Minister Neno Dimov, Agriculture Minister Roumen Porozhanov, Ivaylo Moskovski, Economy Minister Emil Karanikolov, Energy Minister Temenouzhka Petkova and Tourism Minister Nikolina Angelkova.

At the start of the joint meeting, Borissov stressed the importance of Corridor VIII and said it is a priority for Bulgaria. "It is vital for our region," he said.

He also undercored the importance of European solidarity for economic development.

Borissov also said that the issue about the Balkans is a matter of priority for Bulgaria and the joint meeting of the governments proves this.

Prime Minister Zaev thanked the Bulgarian Prime Minister and said that to him Borissov is first a friend and then a colleague. 

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva and her Macedonian counterpart Nikola Dimitrov signed a platform for stepping up cooperation between the ministries. One of the goals of the document is to set in place mechanisms for review and implementation of the Goodneighbourliness Treaty between the two countries.  

The Foreign Ministries will also work for harmonizing the positive messages and overcoming negative attitudes.

Bulgaria reconfirms its readiness to support Macedonia in its strategic goal of achieving EU membership.

The platform envisages joint action for dealing with the new challenges to security and its economic, social and political aspects.

The two sides will enhance cooperation in visa policies, border controls and migration.

The Bulgarian Tourism Ministry and the Economy Ministry of Macedonia signed a protocol of cooperation.

Macedonia is among the top tourist markets for Bulgaria. In January-September 2017, over 413,000 Macedonian citizens travelled to Bulgaria which is a 5.8 per cent increase from this time last year, according to Tourism Ministry statistics. Bulgarians also travel a lot to Macedonia: over 319,000 went there between January and September this year, which was 10,7 per cent more than this time last year.

An agreement was also signed between the InvestBulgaria Agency and Invest Macedonia, said the Foreign Ministry. The two sides undertake to pool efforts towards sustainable economic development and cooperate in projects and programmes involving public-private partnerships. They will exchange information about employer organizations and the unions, and will enhance partnerships.

An agreement was signed between Bulgaria's Electricity System Operation and the Macedonian MEPSO, said the Energy Ministry. Joint tenders for distribution of transmission capacity between the electricity system operators of the two countries start from the beginning of 2018. 

Bulgaria's gas transmission operator Bulgartransgaz and Macedonian Energy Resources signed an agreement to start a feasibility study for a new gas interconnector. The document complies with a memorandum between the Bulgarian Energy Ministry and the Macedonian Economy Ministry from August 1, 2017, said the Energy Ministry.

A memorandum of understanding that was signed Thursday between Bulgaria's Ministry of Transport, Information Technology and Communications and Macedonia's Ministry of Information Society and Administration will bring about a reduction of international roaming charges for telecommunication services between the two countries. 

The charges for mobile calls between Bulgaria and Macedonia are among Europe's highest, varying between 2.99 and 6.99 leva/min.

The two Defence Ministers, Krassimir Karakachanov and Radmila Sekerinska, signed a protocol for cooperation between the ministries that provides for training Macedonian tank drivers in Bulgaria. 

A 10-year memorandum of cooperation signed by the Bulgarian Geodesy, Cartography and Cadastre Agency and the Macedonian Cadastre Agency provides for the exchange of cartographic and geodesic data and cadastral material.