Minister Nikolay Milkov outlined the priorities of Bulgarian foreign policy at a press conference
07 February 2023 News
Minister of Foreign Affairs Nikolay Milkov presented his team and outlined the priorities of the Bulgarian foreign policy at a press conference for the media, which took place in the building of the ministry.
Minister Milkov pointed to the organization and holding of the April 2, 2023 National Assembly elections abroad as a major task for the MFA within the caretaker government. Currently, about 750 polling stations are expected to be opened.
Minister Milkov stressed that all structures of the Ministry, both in the central government and abroad, will be involved in the organization and conduct of the elections. “We want all Bulgarian citizens abroad who wish to be able to exercise their right to vote freely and without hindrance,” he said.
It was pointed out that, given the legal basis that guides the ministry’s organisation of the vote, things are constantly complicated. According to the Minister, for the April vote, many more people from Bulgaria will have to be seconded as members of polling stations abroad. "More than a thousand people are expected to be seconded, which would make the elections more expensive," Nikolay Milkov added. In fulfillment of its commitments under the Electoral Code, the MFA has issued invitations for international observation of the elections for MPs scheduled for April 2 in Bulgaria. Through the Bulgarian missions abroad, requests have also been made to open polling stations in the respective countries.
Minister Milkov also presented the two Deputy Ministers of Foreign Affairs who remain in their posts - Velislava Petrova and Kostadin Kodzhabashev. Svetlana Stoycheva-Etropolski remains in the post of the Minister's Chief of Staff.
Among the leading foreign policy priorities of Bulgaria, Minister Nikolay Milkov highlighted the constructive and active participation of our country in the EU and NATO, the accession to the Schengen area and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, as well as defending and building on the achievements in terms of the European integration of the Western Balkan countries.
Minister Milkov stressed that the work of the MFA on Bulgaria's accession to Schengen will continue in active interaction with the competent Bulgarian institutions, coordination with other candidate countries, dialogue with the Member States, especially those with sceptical positions, and contacts with the European Commission. The aim of our country is to show once again that it has met all the criteria for membership.
Emphasis was also put on the coordination activities related to Bulgaria's accession to the OECD, stressing that with the delivery of the Initial Memorandum to the OECD Secretary General at the end of last year, the actual part of the accession talks was launched. "We are entering the next stage of the negotiation framework, in which Bulgaria should increase the capacity of the dialogue with the OECD structures," the minister said.
Regarding the activities related to the work of the European Union, Nikolay Milkov pointed out that it is very likely that the talks in the EU will be concretised around the next package of sanctions against Russia. According to him, Bulgaria will participate constructively so as to be part of Europe's coordinated approach to the war. "At the same time, we will try to protect the national interest in terms of the economy and the living standards of Bulgarian citizens," he added.
In his statement, the foreign minister defined the events on February 4, marking the 151st anniversary of Gotse Delchev's birth and the cases of detained and beaten Bulgarians at the border, as a new low point in the relations between Sofia and Skopje.
"We are planning, regarding consular issues and legal assistance, to make consultations with them, where our demands will be presented, because we have not been informed about arrests of Bulgarian citizens," Minister Milkov said. According to him, discrimination is not just a consular issue, but a political issue.
During the press conference, Minister Nikolay Milkov expressed his sincere sympathy to all the citizens of the Republic of Türkiye who lost loved ones as a result of the devastating earthquakes.
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