site.btaForeign Minister Gabriel: New EU-Central Asia Roadmap Is Step Towards Deeper Relations

Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel Monday attended the EU-Central Asia Ministerial Meeting in Luxembourg, which was also attended by the foreign ministers of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. A joint roadmap for deepening relations between the EU and the Central Asian countries was presented at the meeting, Gabriel's ministry reported.

In her speech, Gabriel said: "The EU-Central Asia partnership has an interest in focusing on sustainability, connectivity, regional cooperation, and security. In developing infrastructure connectivity between Europe and Asia, Bulgaria supports as a priority the implementation of projects in transport and communications, high technology and innovation, energy and the construction of hydrogen valleys." 

The EU's Strategy for Central Asia was adopted in 2019 and focuses on strategic geography, connectivity, energy resources, regional security, and migration. "It is in our mutual interest that EU-Central Asia relations are intensified and geared towards concrete benefits in political, economic and social terms," Gabriel said. She also put an emphasis on the creation of programmes for the exchange of experiences in the field of culture and education - the so-called "capitals of culture" - to encourage people-to-people contacts and mobility. 

"With the roadmap for deepening EU-Central Asia relations we are building on what has been achieved so far with actions in five key strategic areas", the Bulgarian Foreign Minister added. The first area focuses on deepening inter-regional political dialogue and cooperation. The second is strengthening economic ties, trade, and investment. Third is cooperation in energy, climate-neutral economy, and connectivity. Addressing common security challenges will also be a priority. A fifth focus of the roadmap is the promotion of mobility and people-to-people contacts.

The next EU-Central Asia ministerial meeting will take place in 2024, hosted by Turkmenistan. The meeting will discuss achievements in these five areas and next steps.