site.btaBTA and MIA Sign Information Exchange and Professional Cooperation Agreement

Rome/Sofia, May 26 (BTA) -  The Directors General of the
Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) and the Media Information Agency
(MIA), Kiril Valchev and Dragan Antonovski, Wednesday signed an
information exchange and professional cooperation agreement at
the European Commission Representation office in Rome. The
Presidents of Bulgaria and North Macedonia, Rumen Radev and
Stevo Pendarovski, were both present at the signing.

BTA and MIA will mutually grant and guarantee the right to
receive, use and distribute free of charge each other's full set
 of news programmes, except for materials that are subject to
protected rights by third parties.

Every day the national news agencies of Bulgaria and North
Macedonia will exchange directly selected by the other agency
daily news from the respective country with additional
information about the history (background) and context of the
event, and the other agency will publish it on its website
without change by explicitly indicating and quoting their
partner as the source.
     
"St. Cyril created letters so we can express ourselves and
understand each other. BTA and MIA agreed to exchange news
written in the letters that the students of the Holy Brothers
Cyril and Methodius gave us and named the Cyrillic alphabet
after St. Cyril, who was buried here in Rome ", BTA Director
General Valchev said at the signing of the agreement.

He recalled that before coming to Rome, St. Cyril said in Venice
 in a dispute: "I thank my God that I speak more languages than
all of you, but in church I prefer to say five words that would
be understood and teach others, rather than a thousand words in
a language unknown ...". "According to the world standards of
news agencies, we, BTA and MIA, are obliged to speak one
language - the language of facts - and to oppose lies with the
truth," Valchev noted.

He also referenced a quote by Publilius Syrus from Ancient Rome:
 ''Discipulus est prioris posterior dies" [Today is a student of
 the previous day]. "But let's remember that tomorrow will be a
student of today - and be careful how we read the lessons of the
 previous days today, because that will decide what lessons we
will leave for tomorrow. Me and my colleague, MIA General
Director Dragan Antonovski, have the important responsibility
for the story of today in Bulgaria and in North Macedonia, which
 will be read tomorrow," said Valchev.
  
The General Director of BTA recalled that in his prayer before
his death in Rome, St. Cyril spoke of gathering in unanimity:
"... keep Your faithful flock, to which You had appointed me as
your companion, ... and gather all in unanimity, create good
people ... and inspire the word in their hearts ... ". "Mr.
Antonovski and I agreed that BTA and MIA would help us meet the
people from Bulgaria and North Macedonia, who carry in their
hearts the word of our common servant St. Cyril, so that we can
unite. We agreed to exchange visits of journalists according to
a specific schedule, which we will sign by autumn. From the
Bulgarian side, BTA will invite to the meetings in Sofia and
Skopje leading journalists from various media, not only from BTA
 ", Valchev explained. NV/DT