Bulgarian Embassy in North Macedonia Gives Reception for March 3 National Day

BTA correspondent Marinela Velichkova, Diana Dukovska

A reception held at the Aleksandar Palace Hotel for Bulgaria's March 3 National Day, Skopje, March 5, 2024 (BTA Photo/Vladislav Tentov)

Skopje,

06.03.2024 07:27

(BTA)

On the occasion of Bulgaria's National Day, March 3, the Bulgarian Embassy in Skopje Tuesday held a reception for diplomats, military attaches, mayors, business organizations, representatives of the Bulgarian community and friends from the Republic of North Macedonia and Bulgaria.

"Bulgaria has celebrated 1343 years since it was founded in this part of the Balkan Peninsula and has never changed its name during its history. We have built up wisdom and firmness. This also means that the old rule holds - politics changes but geography does not. Even climate change does not move countries geographically," Bulgaria's Ambassador to North Macedonia, Angel Angelov, said in his address.

In his words, in 2023, a politically difficult year for the two countries, trade continued to increase, reaching EUR 1.3 billion. The diplomat thanked businesses on both sides of the border "for helping to create a different environment."

During this ski season, tourists from the Republic of North Macedonia to Bulgaria have increased by 15% and 80,000 border crossings were recorded in January, Ambassador Angelov said.

He also said: "On the other hand, insufficient communication and a lack of empathy, as well as prejudices among political elites, leave room for improvement. Trust is a key issue, and trust can only exist when there is predictability. Trust exists when agreements are honoured. Geopolitical developments unfortunately shorten the horizon of predictability. As a country on the Black Sea, Bulgaria is very close to a real war fought after Russia's aggression against Ukraine. As an EU country, we have been on Kyiv's side from Day One. Here we should bow to the thousands of Ukrainian and other soldiers who fell in the war of 1877-1878, after which Bulgaria was liberated. Now their descendants are fighting and dying in a war. The countries not involved in the fighting are required to work together. Both Allies and partners. I would particularly like to highlight the role of the NATO Multinational Battlegroup in the Novo Selo Training Area. There, soldiers from Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia with colleagues from the United States and Albania, under Italian command, work, train and communicate successfully. This is the real Corridor 8 we talk so much about."

Addressing the representatives of the Bulgarian community, Ambassador Angelov said North Macedonia's European path will help them feel equal in their own country. "Bulgaria will keep supporting you. Every Bulgarian is important to us," the diplomat said.

The Ambassador noted the work related to humanitarian causes and the social inclusion of people with various problems in the Republic of North Macedonia, which is carried out by his wife, Bilyana Angelova.

On the occasion of the 146th anniversary of Bulgaria's Liberation, a guard of honour stood at the entrance to the Embassy.

/DD/