Ivan Gašparovič Met with His Bulgarian Counterpart

Within the framework of the 18th Central Europe Summit, President of the Slovak Republic Ivan Gašparovič met with President of the Republic of Bulgaria Rosen Plevneliev.

“I am truly glad that you have accepted my invitation to Slovakia and that our meeting coincides with the 20th anniversary of the independent Slovak Republic and the 1150th anniversary of the arrival of Saints Cyril and Methodius in the territory of Slovakia” Ivan Gašparovič said in the beginning of the meeting.

According to Ivan Gašparovič, our two nations are linked by the Cyrillo-Methodian tradition, membership of the EU and NATO, friendly relations between our peoples, and good cooperation in the fields of culture and tourism.

“I am glad that the intensity of relations between Slovakia and Bulgaria has markedly increased. One of the proofs is your forthcoming official visit to Slovakia this autumn, in the year when me mark the 1150th anniversary of the arrival of Saints Cyril and Methodius to the Great Moravia and the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Slovakia and Bulgaria”, said Slovakia’s head of state.

The President of Slovakia further noted that the two countries needed to intensify, in particular, their bilateral economic cooperation. The mutual trade last year declined and the overall trade turnover of €430 million (2012) was not satisfactory. Various Slovak companies in the sectors of energy, infrastructure and water management are interested in entering the Bulgarian market.

“In the area of energy security, we have a common interest in diversifying the routes and, mainly, the sources of energy. We are keeping a close eye on how the Southern Stream and Nabucco gas pipeline projects, where Bulgaria is an important player, develop”, Ivan Gašparovič said.

As the Slovak President during the bilateral meeting said, Slovakia is interested in the Sofia Tech Park (the first Bulgarian Hi-Tech Park slated for completion in 2015).”Slovak companies will also be interested to cooperate. We can offer our long-standing experience in the building of scientific and technological parks”, the Slovak President remarked.

“We see a room for improvement in coordinating the presentation of our European policies. And this can be done through the Friends of Cohesion platform, the V4 + format, or the Danube Strategy”. Ivan Gašparovič said.

Rosen Plevneliev stated that our mutual relations were good and friendly. He also confirmed his intention to arrive in Slovakia with a strong business delegation to pave new avenues for fostering mutual economic cooperation.

“We highly value your 100,000 tourists vacationing [in Bulgaria] and, likewise, our citizens admire the beauty of your mountains and appreciate your hospitality”, the Bulgarian President said.

Rosen Plevneliev confirmed that “our two countries are very ambitious when it comes to modern technologies and this is the area where we can find a lot of common ground”. He also underscored the importance of mutual cooperation in the fields of energy and transport of oil and gas. Within the framework of the Danube Strategy, Bulgaria intends to launch projects also with Slovakia’s participation.

Rosen Plevneliev expressed his gratitude for Slovakia’s support of the ambition of Bulgaria to join the Schengen area.

Ivan Gašparovič and his Bulgarian counterpart also discussed the ways of strengthening the role of the so-called ‘new member states’ of the EU, which are, oftentimes, the driving force of Europe’s economic growth.