05.06.2019
Prime Minister Boyko Borissov and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Stef Blok discussed current issues from Europe’s agenda, and concerns of common interest for both states. During the meeting, an emphasis was put on the fact that Bulgaria continues to pursue the goal of taking part in the integration processes of the EU. Prime Minister Borissov pointed out that joining both the Schengen Area and the Eurozone are among the primary priorities of our state, and a key-factor of achieving them is having Netherlands’ support. “This will guarantee Bulgaria’s full involvement in the collective European efforts to adequately manage all the challenges in relation to the security of the external borders of the EU”, underlined Prime Minster Borissov. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands noted that Bulgaria has been successfully protecting the external border of Europe. During the discussion, Boyko Borissov said that in order to keep the Schengen Area whole, consistent efforts in two key aspects are required – increasing the level of security of our external borders and improving the functionality of the asylum granting system.
In the course of the meeting, Bulgaria’s progress regarding the reforms implemented to fit the frame of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism was also mentioned. “We appreciate the cooperation with the European Commission on this matter and we expect the results we have achieved so far and our determination to continue working on those processes to be also appreciated by our European partners,” said Prime Minister Borissov.
During the dialogue, Prime Minister Borissov pointed out that Bulgaria would highly appreciate Netherlands’ support for the state’s accession to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and will expect constructive assistance for the launching of the negotiations as soon as possible. Our country also expects Netherlands’ support in regard to our application to host the seat of the European Labour Authority.
The constructive bilateral cooperation was also a focus of the conversation between the Bulgarian Prime Minister and Minister Stef Blok. Further increase of this cooperation was discussed in the context of the 110th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Bulgaria and the Netherlands. Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said that it is important for the Netherlands to remain a leading investor in our country, while also keeping the positive tendencies of the bilateral trade and increasing the possibilities for more Bulgarian goods to be available in the Netherlands. For 2018, the trade between the two states is worth €1.994 billion. Bulgarian exports to the Netherlands are worth €774.3 million, which marks a growth of 17.1% compared to 2017. Imports from the Netherlands are worth €1.220 billion, and have increased by 9.8%. For the period 1996 – 2018, direct investments from the Netherlands are worth €7.8 billion and thus the country places first in FDI in Bulgaria.
