site.btaPresidents of Bulgaria, Greece Support Western Balkans' EU Prospect

Presidents of Bulgaria, Greece Support Western Balkans'  EU Prospect

Sofia, December 14 (BTA) - The European project would not be complete until all countries from the Western Balkans take their place in the European family, said President Rosen Plevneliev here on Monday. He was speaking at a joint news conference with Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos, who is on a two-day state visit to Bulgaria at the invitation of his Bulgarian counterpart as of Monday.

The two presidents addressed the media after a one-on-one meeting and plenary talks between the official delegations.

Plevneliev said that the EU integration of the countries in the region does not have an alternative and it is the driving force of the positive change being observed in the Western Balkans in the last years. "Only together and by observing the principles of goodneighbourliness and non-manipulation of history can be handle the contemporary challenges and build these Balkans that we dream of: peaceful and prosperous," Plevneliev added.

Pavlopoulos said that Greece is in favour of the Western Balkans' European prospect, and that countries which want to become partners of the EU should respect the institutional facts and, most of all, history. In his words, living together within the EU is impossible under the conditions of falsification of history. Greece is also in favour of Turkey's European future if this country wishes to strive for entry in the EU and if it respects the European facts on the political and economic level, as well as the international law regarding open matters. In his words, these are open matters that Turkey has with Greece, and not the other way round, such as the Cyprus Issue. Turkey should respect EU law and human rights during the entire EU accession procedure, the Greek President also said.

Bilateral relations, trade and economic ties between Bulgaria and Greece, the connectivity in the region, cooperation in energy, and the unprecedented migration pressure also featured on the agenda of the two presidents' talks.

Plevneliev said that the migration crisis is a common problem and its solution requires a common European approach. He added that Europe should be strong, pro-active and act decisively for the elimination of both the consequences and the prime causes for the migration crisis. "Our wish - both of Bulgaria and Greece - is that all countries in the region and in the EU formulate clear rules for the solution of the problem with migration and stick to them," he noted. According to him, the so-called hotspots related to the refugees should exist in every European country, because migrants enter everywhere and they should be processed in the same way. In his words, when talking about efficiency of EU's external borders and hundreds of thousands of people running from conflicts and war, it is impossible and wrong to leave any country on its own.

The Greek President also described the crisis with refugees as one of the challenges facing the world and the EU. In his words, the EU has finally understood that the centre of weight is not currency but man. Another challenge is terrorism, he said, adding that refugees should be approached in a humanitarian manner but terrorists, who are enemies of mankind, the Western world and civilization, and democracy, should be fought with implacability.

At the news conference, the two presidents underscored the active trade and economic cooperation between Bulgaria and Greece. Plevneliev said that Greece is one of the three biggest investors in Bulgaria and one of the five biggest countries that are economic partners of Bulgaria, and that the bilateral trade amounts to nearly 3 billion euro a year. Last year, Bulgaria was visited by over 1 million Greek tourists and a similar number of Bulgarians visited the Hellenic Republic, he noted.

The two presidents expressed confidence that the forthcoming high-level meeting of the Cooperation Council between Bulgaria and Greece, which will be held in Sofia in the first half of 2016, will help develop even more projects and new joint initiatives. 

Plevneliev noted the importance of building a modern regional energy infrastructure, and welcomed last week's signing of the final investment decision on the construction of a natural gas interconnector between Greece and Bulgaria. The implementation of this project will contribute to the improvement of the region's energy security and the diversification of gas sources, he said.

"Bulgaria and Greece are an unavoidable factor in the stability and democratic European development of the countries in the region, they are a driving force of goodneighbourliness, cooperation and friendship between the people in the region," Plevneliev also said.

The Bulgarian President thanked Greece for supporting his country's membership in the EU and NATO years ago, as well as its entry in Schengen. 
 
Pavlopoulos said that Greece will always support Bulgaria on EU matters. He expressed wonder why Bulgaria's entry in Schengen is being delayed given that the country meets all the criteria, and added that it would be good if the EU bodies conclude this pending issue.

The Greek President also mentioned the need of European solidarity during the solving of the Cyprus Issue, which his country regards not as a personal but as a European matter that goes beyond the EU's borders. This issue should be solved on the basis of international law in a manner which is in harmony with the European realities, he added.