site.btaBulgarian, Greek Interior Minister Discuss Greek Farmer Protests over the Phone

Bulgarian, Greek Interior Minister Discuss Greek Farmer Protests over the Phone

Sofia, January 31 (BTA) - In a telephone conversation, the Interior Ministers of Bulgaria and Greece, Plamen Ouzounov and Nikolaos Toskas, discussed the protests of Greek farmers close to the Bulgarian border. According to the Bulgarian Interior Ministry, Toskas assured Ouzounov that the Greek police is taking all necessary measures to prevent a blockade of the border.

The conversation was initiated by the Bulgarian Interior Minister.

The two sides agreed to stay personally in touch and brief each other on the specific situation - as well on other matters of shared interest.

On the minister's order, Interior Ministry Chief Secretary Georgi Kostov has left for Blagoevgrad to coordinate actions that may be necessary in the event of a change of the situation, the Ministry said.

Meanwhile the Border Police reported that cross-border traffic at the Kulata-Promahonas crossing was temporarily suspended around 13:00 hrs on Tuesday as a result of the ongoing protests of Greek farmers. A 3-km line of cars and trucks is waiting to cross on the Bulgarian side.

Transport Minister Hristo Alexiev has sent a letter to his Greek counterpart Christos Spirtzis expressing hope that the Greek authorities will take whatever measures are necessary to prevent a closure of the border and hindrance of the free movement of goods, said Alexiev's Ministry.

The Transport Minister has also written to two EU Commissioners, Violeta Bulc (Mobility and Transport) and Elzbieta Bienkowska (Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs) to inform them of the situation on the Bulgarian-Greek border.

Representatives of the Interior Ministry bodies, the regional administration and all competent state institutions had a working meeting at the Kulata checkpoint later in the day.

Speaking at a news briefing Interior Ministry Chief Commissioner Kostov said that the passenger flow through the Kulata-Promahonas checkpoint was halted for around 60 minutes at the request of the Greek authorities, so that they could lead out persons, violating the public order. He stressed that this was not a blockade with farming equipment. Kostov praised the Greek law-enforcement bodies for their cooperation.