Ministerial Meeting in Taormina, Italy, Marking the 70th Anniversary of the 1955 Messina Conference
19 June 2025 News
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Elena Shekerletova represented Bulgaria at the ministerial meeting commemorating the 70th anniversary of the 1955 Messina Conference. The Conference laid the groundwork and developed the concept for the European Economic Community, established two years later by the Treaty of Rome.
Deputy Minister Shekerletova noted that the decisions made at the 1955 Conference, rooted in our shared European values and principles, had represented a decisive step in advancing the European idea and remain as relevant today as they were seventy years ago. By upholding and strengthening the EU’s core principles – democracy, the rule of law, the integrity of the single market, the four freedoms, and good neighbourly relations – we enable the Union to reaffirm its readiness to meet current geopolitical challenges.
Bulgaria has made significant efforts to deepen the scope of its EU integration, successfully becoming a member of the Schengen Area. Having recently received positive convergence reports confirming that Bulgaria meets all criteria for eurozone membership, we are actively preparing for the next step in our European integration and the introduction of the euro from January 1, 2026.
In its statement, the Bulgarian side reaffirmed its principled support for the EU Enlargement process, based on the merit-based approach and strict adherence to established criteria and conditionality. With regard to discussions on the Future of Europe, the Deputy Minister underscored the importance of a process that is as inclusive and transparent as possible, taking into account the positions of all Member States.
The meeting concluded with the adoption of a declaration calling for the deepening of European integration and consolidation.
On the sidelines of the event, Deputy Minister Shekerletova also held a bilateral meeting with Benjamin Haddad, Minister Delegate for Europe under the Prime Minister and Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of France. They discussed key topics on the European agenda and reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening European integration and defending the Union’s values and principle, including the need to uphold the conditionality and criteria underpinning the EU enlargement process.