site.btaPresident Radev: Bulgaria, Egypt Are on Either Side of Troubled Region, Joint Efforts Can Make It Stable

115 POLITICS - BULGARIAN PRESIDENT - EGYPT - VISIT Ampl

President Radev: Bulgaria,
Egypt Are on Either Side of
Troubled Region, Joint Efforts Can Make It Stable

March 26 (BTA Special Correspondent Assen Boyadzhiev) Bulgarian President Rumen Radev and his wife Dessislava Radeva  Tuesday were welcomed with an official ceremony at the Al  Ittihadia Palace by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and  his wife Entesar al-Sisi. The two heads of state had a  one-on-one meeting, followed by plenary talks between the two delegations.

Radev is on an official visit to Egypt from March 25 to 27.

In a statement after the talks with his Egyptian counterpart,  President Radev said that Bulgaria and Egypt are on either side of a troubled region, and it is up to their joint efforts to  make this region stable and secure. In his words, Bulgaria and  Egypt are natural allies in the fight against terrorism,  organized crime, radicalism, and illegal migration.

Bulgaria commends Egypt's efforts to broaden the dialogue  between the African Union and the League of Arab States, on the  one side, and the EU, on the other, Radev also said. "Bulgaria,as one of the closest EU Member States to Egypt, bears a  responsibility to make the problems existing in the region, the voice of Egypt, be heard better in the EU," he noted. He added that Europe's stability and security depend on the situation in the Middle East and North Africa region.

Radev noted the growing two-way trade in the last years which has exceeded 1 billion dollars, but added that there is untappedpotential and ambitions for a much bigger growth. In his words,the two sides discussed the future signing of agreements on the establishment of a joint commission on cooperation and a business council. Also discussed was the broadening of cooperation in the area of investments and joint entry in third
markets. Listed as prospective areas of cooperation were the automobile industry, electrical machinery and installations,  the food industry, agriculture, and trade. Radev added the energy sector to this list, noting that Egypt and Bulgaria couldoffer an alternative in the diversification of supplies and routes, particularly of natural gas.

The Egyptian President described the first visit of his Bulgarian counterpart as the highest point in the development of bilateral relations, recalling that the Bulgarian Prime Minister visited Egypt in October 2018. In his words, this visit shows the two countries' strong will to continue developing their relations, particularly in the political and economic spheres. Egypt hopes the visit will produce clear results, such as an increase of investments, he added.

In his words, he and Radev talked about the opportunities for responding successfully to a series of challenges, such as illegal migration, and about the successful fight against terrorism. Regarding the problems of illegal migration, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi commented that their solution requires the roles and burden to be distributed. "We have reached the conclusion that we are facing the same challenges and this requires that we
 join efforts. The presence of political will is a solid basis for our relations' future," he said.

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