site.btaPresident Radev Pays Official Visit to Austria

October 4 (BTA Special Correspondent Tsvetana
Delibaltova) - President Rumen Radev met with his Austrian
counterpart, Alexander Van der Bellen Friday during an official
visit in Vienna. He was received with honours at Hofburg Palace
and had one-on-one talks with his host. After that the two
presidents held a news conference where they commended bilateral
 political, economic, diplomatic and cultural relations.

Van der Bellen praised political relations and economic
cooperation thanks to which trade between the two countries has
reached 1,300 million euro.

The Bulgarian President underscored that, although this is his
first visit to Austria, he has had numerous contacts with his
host and has established agreement with him on a number of
issues, including security, migration, the combat against drug
and human trafficking, terrorism and organized crime. Radev
expressed gratitude for Austria's support for Bulgaria's work
with the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development
(OECD) and for this country's accession to the Schengen
visa-free travel area.

The sides underscored the centennial cultural cooperation
between the two countries that continues to this day.

Particular attention was paid to the Danube Strategy concerning
14 countries, some of which outside the EU.

The two presidents also discussed the issue of migration and
Radev underscored Bulgaria's role as an external EU border to
manage the migrant crisis. He also said the EU should make a
roadmap for the countries with land borders.

Commenting the EU integration of North Macedonia and Albania,
Van der Bellen noted that there are cultural and political
issues which have to be clarified but which should not stop the
accession process.

Radev said that Bulgaria is one of the countries that are most
supportive of North Macedonia's accession to EU and NATO, but
that support is not unconditional and goes hand in hand with
clear conditions about history and language.

The sides also discussed relations with Russia and the sanctions
 on it. Van der Bellen said that a recent thaw in relations is
encouraging but is not enough to lead to cancelling the
sanctions. Radev spoke in favour of finding a diplomatic
solution to the conflict which has led to the sanctions and said
 that if Europe aspires to play a leading role on the world
stage, it needs stability which is impossible without dialogue
with Russia.

The Bulgarian President also conferred with Austrian Federal
Chancellor Brigitte Bierlein and the President of the Austrian
National Council, Wolfgang Subotka. /RY/BR