site.btaForeign Minister Zaharieva Meets with Bulgarians in Washington on US Visit

November 5 (BTA) - "Bulgaria achieved a lot during its
presidency of the European Council and I would like very much if
 this faith in ourselves persisted," said Foreign Minister
Ekaterina Zaharieva during a meeting with the Bulgarian
community in Washington, quoted by her ministry. She added that
Bulgaria is unable to cope in a world with a complex
international agenda without the Bulgarian expatriates, who are
the country's best ambassadors.

Zaharieva underscored that during these six months Bulgaria
showed that it could  choose a topic which is important both to
the EU and the US and make it a priority.

"Not only did we sign a treaty with Macedonia which had been in
the works for 12 years, but this treaty gave an impetus and the
courage to resolve the outstanding issues between Macedonia and
Greece. We showed that as a new EU member, as a state which has
been building its democracy for only 27 years, we are not
focused solely on our own problems but we can take an issue and
make it important for the remaining 27 countries," said
Zaharieva.

The Foreign Minister noted that the government must work to draw
 back expatriates to Bulgaria.

"Our compatriots abroad are interested in career opportunities
here, the living environment and trust in the institutions and
the state," added Zaharieva. She noted that in 2017 for the
first time the number of people who left the country and those
who returned was equal. "This shows that we are on the right
track," she said.

Zaharieva said that Bulgaria's missions abroad will provide
detailed information to those who want to return.

During a Q&A session which followed the Bulgarians in Washington
 showed keen interest in  Bulgaria's foreign policy. They said
they were proud of the achievements of the Bulgarian EU
Presidency.

They raised many questions about the current agenda including on
 Brexit, migration and the European perspective of the Western
Balkan countries. RY/PP