The Bulgarian premier: My dream is to have a Balkan region very coordinated, on all topics

The premier of the Republic of Bulgaria, Kiril Petkov, mentioned on Monday the importance of good coordination between the states in the Balkan area, meaning that  when they talk ‘in one voice’, the region can  really develop. The statement was made in a press conference where  the government heads of the NATO member states in South-East Europe gathered in a reunion on Monday in the Bulgarian capital city, Sofia.   ‘It is important now during these crisis moments in our region, when the war in Ukraine drew the attention of everybody, and the security of the region is threatened, to get united and be coordinated – over the level of the NATO, of the EU or of the future member states – at Balkan level. My dream is to have a region of the Balkans very coordinated, on all topics. We have discussed about the fact that, if this coordination goes on as it has started, when the tranborderly cooperation is activated, when our strategies for defence are the same for everybody, when economic competition is reunited, this region may become one of the quickest economically developed ones at European level’ said Kiril Petkov, according to Agerpres correspondent.He said that collaboration among these states will provide a better living standard for the citizens. The premier mentioned that during the meeting in Sofia very important issues were discussed, issues which have become even more’ pressing’ in the context of the war, such as cooperation in the energy domain.‘Our region is dependent on Russian energy resources. We have discussed about the possibility to change the direction of a part of the existing pipes, which should work in the other direction, to take liquefied gas from Greece and Turkey and bring it in the Balkans, through the existing pipes. Similarly, we have discussed about connectivity, about corridor 8 (…)/ These connections are not important for the economies of our countries only, but for the military mobility as well. All NATO member states discuss about planes and investments in equipment, but these equipments have reduced efficiency, as a whole, if there is no corresponding logistics strategy’ said Kiril Petkov.As regards migration, the Bulgarian premier showed that Romania received an important number of refugees and ‘ that they did a good job’ by hosting them. He pleaded for joint strategy in this domain as well. At the same time, he expressed his hope that soon the process of Ukraine’s reconstruction starts and the four states could coordinate their efforts in the domain. Another subject approached in the discussions was combating money laundry and fight against corruption. In this sense, he spoke about the importance of transborderly cooperation.Kiril Petkov said that the participating states will continue to discuss on these topics, including at the level of ministers. One of the aspects approached will be that of food security in the region.   ‘The Balkans must become the symbol of a coordinated region. Let us change what happened in the past. When we speak on one voice, this region can really develop’ Kiril Petkov said.