site.btaChinese Ambassador Dai Qingli Addresses Sofia Business Forum

Against the backdrop of an international situation filled with conflicts, China and Europe must be friends, not opponents, cooperating rather than confronting each other, Chinese Ambassador here Dai Qingli  said on Monday at the opening of a Bulgarian-Chinese Business Forum, organized by the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI). "The important task for China and Bulgaria is to turn traditional friendship and expectations into a driving force for cooperation," she added.

The event took place with the support of the Economy Ministry and the Chinese Embassy in Sofia on the occasion of the eighteenth session of the Bulgarian-Chinese Intergovernmental Mixed Commission for Economic Cooperation, hosted by Sofia.

“The new regular meeting of the Bulgarian-Chinese Intergovernmental Mixed Commission for Economic Cooperation will be held on September 16 after a five-year break. This is exciting news for practical economic cooperation,” said Ambassador Dai Qingli. According to her, convening the mixed commission is an event of great importance, which will take place in the year marking 10 years of cooperation between Bulgaria and China under the“One Belt, One Road” initiative.

The ambassador emphasized that this year there has been intensive high-level exchange between the two countries, citing examples of Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov’s two visits to China and visits by five Bulgarian ministers to China, as well as visits by seven Chinese leaders to Bulgaria.

According to her, bilateral trade has grown more than threefold in recent years - from USD 1.7 billion to over USD 4 billion. Chinese investments are also developing, especially in automobile manufacturing, new energy sources, and information technology. Chinese companies are participating in the construction of photovoltaic systems and energy storage power plants in Bulgaria.

Dai Qingli assured those present that China will never forget that Bulgaria is the second country in the world to establish diplomatic relations with China, celebrating 75 years of this date in 2024. According to her, the two countries have always treated each other with respect and equality, striving for mutual benefit and win-win results, recalling that President Xi Jinping and President Radev elevated bilateral relations to a strategic partnership level in 2019.

The ambassador added that the Chinese government is now focused on deepening reforms, promoting modernization, and strengthening cooperation with EU countries.