site.btaPM Denkov, Turkish Ambassador Discuss Turkish Businesses' Problems in Bulgaria, Common Border Protection

Meeting here on Friday, Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov and Turkish Ambassador Aylin Sekizkok agreed on a regional roundtable to help solve the most pressing problems of investors in Northeastern Bulgaria. Turkish companies, which are among the biggest employers in this part of the country, are expected to be the most active, the Government Information Service said. 

In addition to local authorities, invited to attend will be representatives of the ministries of Education, of Economy, and of Labour and Social Policy. The focus will be on the development of human capital: professional training and re-qualification of personnel for the industry in the region.

Denkov and Sekizkok also discussed the main difficulties faced by Turkish businesses in Bulgaria and the options for overcoming these. They talked about the visa regime and the shortage of qualified workforce combined with the complex procedures for importing third-country workers. The Turkish Ambassador expressed the interest of the Turkish businesses in participating in the modernization of the Bulgarian military industry as well as of the Bulgarian Army's equipment.

The Bulgarian Prime Minister and Sekizkok paid special attention to the protection of the common border and the curbing of illegal migration - one of the Bulgarian government's main priorities. The Turkish side committed to cooperate actively for the reduction of the migration flow towards Bulgaria. On his part, Denkov promised that ways will be sought to ease the transit traffic of Turkish nationals through Bulgaria, which is particularly heavy in the summer.

Turkiye is among Bulgaria's main trade and economic partners outside of the EU, and Turkish companies are among the biggest investors in Bulgaria, Economy and Industry Minister Bogdan Bogdanov said at the opening of a Bulgarian-Turkish business forum in the ski resort of Bansko last month. He cited data according to which the bilateral trade exceeded EUR 7.3 billion in 2022, up by 40% from 2021.