site.btaAgreement on Bulgaria's Participation in OECD's Programme for Ukraine Ratified

Parliament adopted at second reading a bill for ratification of the agreement on Bulgaria's participation in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Programme for Ukraine with a voluntary financial contribution of EUR 60,000 (BGN 117,350). It was approved with 97 votes in favour, 46 against and 5 abstentions. The agreement was concluded through an exchange of letters dated August 17 and 21.

The financing of Bulgaria's contribution shall be provided from the approved earmarked current and capital transfers for official development assistance and humanitarian aid under Foreign Ministry's 2023 budget.

The OECD Programme for Ukraine was officially announced during the organization's annual ministerial meeting, held on  June 7-8 in Paris, with the aim of supporting the country's reform efforts on its path to EU and OECD membership, the report of the parliamentary Foreign Policy Committee said. 

Bulgaria's involvement in the OECD Programme for Ukraine through the provision of a voluntary financial contribution will be a further confirmation of the country's firm commitment to supporting Ukraine's recovery and economic development, the report added.

Vazrazhdane opposed the ratification of the document. Vazrazhdane MP Angel Georgiev said that while the assemblage [a term used to describe the former regular government's ruling majority that often carries a negative connotation] is ready to donate such funds to Ukraine, it did not accept his party's proposal for BGN 20,000 investment into Bosilegrad's Bulgarian Culture and Information Centre. "When it comes to Ukraine, many times a larger sum is simply given to have some Euro-Atlantic buttering up of Bulgaria to its partners," Georgiev commented. According to him, this money could be spent on something much more reasonable.

"It does not come down to Euro-Atlanticism, but to a choice between sending money to Bulgarians abroad or to Ukraine," argued There is Such a People (TISP) Floor Leader Toshko Yordanov.

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Parliament adopted on second reading a bill ratifying the agreement establishing an international European Union - Latin America and Caribbean Foundation. The Foundation is an international organization with an intergovernmental character under international law, the Foreign Affairs Committee said. The agreement creates conditions for intensifying Bulgaria's relations with Latin American countries and contains important elements contributing to the achievement of the EU's external action objectives.

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In two readings in one sitting, the National Assembly ratified the Agreement between Bulgaria and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on the renewal of the designation of the Regional Centre for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in South-Eastern Europe as a category 2 centre under the auspices of UNESCO in Sofia.