02.03.2020
"I would also like to express my gratitude in your presence for the fact that the Turkey and its institutions are firmly in compliance with the agreement with the European Union on the Bulgarian-Turkish border. This gives the oppurtunity to Bulgarian citizens to sleep peacefully at night. So we have reaffirmed that commitment!" Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said during a joint statement with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan after the two leaders met at the Bestepe Presidential Palace in Ankara. "I have made a lot of efforts to organize a tripartite meeting in Sofia in a larger format," Prime Minister Borissov said and added: "At the same time, the President was ready to come to Sofia on Friday. But his unwillingness to sit down at the same table with his colleague Mitsotakis cooled my desire to organize such a meeting. But my invitation is valid. "
The Bulgarian Prime Minister expressed his confidence that sooner or later such a meeting should be held with the European Commission, the European Council and the European partners. "But perhaps not everyone is mature and not everyone sees the enormous humanitarian danger that is approaching," emphasised Borissov. The Prime Minister noted that actions should be reasonable, promoting peace and diplomacy, respecting the interest of others and respecting the signed agreements. "We voted for this money to be given to Turkey. I cannot understand why they were not given. Sharing weight is a fundamental principle of the EU," the Prime Minister commented.
"I will tirelessly work for good neighborliness and understanding. I will work hard to save those women and children who are sleeping on the border. I hope that when those who are far from this region speak, they will first see if we have fulfilled our conditions, our obligations and what we want then from the respective country," said Prime Minister Borissov. He welcomed Turkey's desire, along with Russia, to find a peaceful solution in Moscow on Thursday and the lethal conflict in Syria to be diplomatically solved.
During the joint statement, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov thanked the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan for quickly contacting the Bulgarian Minister of Health for providing emergency supply of protective clothing against the coronavirus, which are produced in Turkey and are scarce in Bulgaria.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan highlighted the burden Turkey has carried with more than 4 million refugees and underlined that the country is implementing its agreement with the EU. Erdoğan regretted that Turkey's expectations for the EU to share this burden had not been answered. According to Erdoğan, the EU is applying a double standard. The Turkish head of state emphasized the excellent relations between Bulgaria and Turkey. "We have excellent cooperation with Bulgaria in the field of security and solidarity on the basis of mutual respect and understanding. This notion of cooperation and solidarity should be an example for all EU countries," Erdoğan further noted.
