June 24 - "The general formula of Bulgaria's foreign policy implemented by the cabinet includes European integration, regional stability and security, and mutually beneficial bilateral relations. So far, Greece has best fitted in it," Bulgarian Prime Minister Zhan Videnov said this evening in an interview for the Panorama news and views weekly TV magazine. Both the Bulgarian and the Greek views on the major Balkan problems are either similar or identical. Bulgaria and Greece resolved the grave problems in their bilateral relations, Videnov said. The several years' period of a certain degree of insecurity in them was overcome and a new approach has been adopted that promotes the mobilization of the entire heritage of values and the traditional friendship between the Bulgarian and Greek peoples, which fits well in the context of the European integration and starts to prove itself a major factor for the Balkan stability," Videnov said. He went on to say that the Bulgarian-Greek relations serve as an example for cooperation and integration in the name of security and stability.
There is the possibility for the dangerous plans for turning the Balkans into a "militarized buffer between the rich Christian North and the poor Muslim South" to be averted, Videnov said. "The recent debates on the NATO issue showed that such ideas have crossed the minds of many people here and abroad; this augurs bad for Bulgaria, the Balkans and Europe," Videnov said. "Being at the crossroad between three continents, Bulgaria has always suffered from this geostrategic reality. The new projects in the field of energy, raw materials and communications, the oil and natural gas pipelines, the energy exchange power lines, the Western Europe-Eastern Mediterranean motor highway can turn Bulgaria into an energy and communications centre with transregional importance which will guarantee the economic, social and national security of the Balkan countries," Videnov said. "We would negotiate for such a stability-building factor on the Balkans, and not for minorities, outlands, borders, and historic heritages. Bulgaria and Greece share the idea for such an approach towards the Balkan policy.
Our chief initiatives for the time being are aimed at expanding the contacts between the European Union [EU], the Central European countries and the countries of the Black Sea region," Videnov said. Answering a question whether the European and Black Sea structures and Bulgaria's problems are at cross-purposes, Videnov said that a "broader understanding about Europe should prevail, if not now, then in the future". The cabinet would assist in President Zhelev's contacts with the heads of state of the EU and of the Black Sea zone [for economic cooperation], so that such an understanding prevail, Videnov said. Responding to a question, the Bulgarian Prime Minister admitted that the Bulgarian energy industry is in a grave situation and that the problem is a national one. It should not be passed over in silence that the blame for this state of affairs lies with the energy industry's top managers, Videnov said. Two years ago Parliament approved state guarantees on considerable loans which the World Bank extended to this country's energy industry. "The [energy] industry failed to meet any of the conditions in these credit agreements. This situation now endangers our relations with the international financial institutions as a whole," Videnov said. The previous leadership of the Energy Committee was keen on demanding price markups, new subsidies and credits, and electricity rationing; the cabinet, however, has far more important requirements as regards the energy industry itself, as for instance energy- effective and energy-saving practices, efficient management, and cracking down on corruption," Videnov said. The cabinet will not hesitate to impose strict measures when it comes to the future of power generation in Bulgaria and this country's energy security, and not to that of the private interests of economic agents. Answering a question about Russian Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin's recent visit to Bulgaria, Videnov said that the cabinet was satisfied with what the visit achieved. "We laid the new legal and institutional groundwork for the bilateral relations. The agreements that were signed on cooperation in the raw materials, energy and communications sectors are extremely important for Bulgaria and guarantee the smooth transition to new market relations between the two countries,' Videnov said. What is meant by this is a new formula, balance, combination of the two countries' national interests and bilateral relations within a European framework, Videnov concluded.
June 24 - Bulgaria and Greece should play a very important role for the restoration of peace in the Balkans not only by voicing their intentions, but through concrete steps as well, Greek President Costis Stephanopoulos said in an interview in tonight's Panorama, the weekly news and views television show. Friendly relations between Bulgaria and Greece are on a very high level. There are prospects for bilateral cooperation in transport, economic development and within the framework of international organizations. Greece is resolved to support Bulgaria's efforts to join the international organizations of which Greece is a member, Stephanopoulos said.
Asked whether he would be visiting Bulgaria this autumn, he said the exact date would be specified via diplomatic channels, stressing again that there is a large potential for the development of bilateral relations. In an interview on Panorama, Greek Foreign Minister Karolos Papoulias said the fact that Zhan Videnov chose Greece for his first visit to a Balkan country in his capacity as prime minister (on June 19-20) was a sign of Bulgaria's foreign policy orientation. Prime Minister Videnov's visit was extremely important, Papoulias said. Greek-Bulgarian relations have a large unrealized potential, but they are excellent and problem-free. The possibilities for cooperation between the two countries will certainly influence Balkan cooperation, for which both countries are striving, the Greek foreign minister said. In a Panorama survey on the role of Bulgaria and Greece for Balkan stability, conducted among 100 leading journalists, 80 per cent said it was positive, 1 per cent negative, and 19 per cent were uncertain. The respondents said Bulgaria's relations with Greece were a natural foreign policy priority.
June 23 - The negotiations for Bulgaria's entry in the World Trade Organization (WTO), which replaced the former General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, started today. The bilateral negotiations for Bulgaria's access to the U.S. commodity and services markets took place today, head of the Bulgarian delegation Dencho Georgiev, said, interviewed by the Bulgarian National Television. The completion of this country's bilateral negotiations with WTO member-states is one of the conditions for Bulgaria's accession in the Organization. Once the bilateral negotiations on the access to the commodity and services markets have been completed, the WTO working group on Bulgaria's entry in the Organization should also finish its work. "The negotiations made considerable progress especially as regards agricultural produce and farm subsidies," Georgiev said. Progress was also made in the field of tariffs imposed on industrial products. "The negotiations have not finished yet," Georgiev said. "There are some problems in respect of trade in services," he added. Negotiations with other countries are yet to be held. "It is difficult to predict whether the bilateral negotiations for the goods and services will have finished before the meeting of the WTO working group on July 5 and 7," Georgiev said.
June 23 - As of today Bulgaria started issuing free multiple entry one-year visas for journalists of the news agencies of the Balkan states who are members of the Association of Balkan News Agencies, the Foreign Ministry said. This decision was made in response to an address by the chiefs of the agencies to the prime ministers of the countries in the region. Representatives of two Bulgarian news agencies - BTA (the national news agency) and the Balkan Information Pool, are attending a two-day conference of the leaders of ten Balkan news agencies which opened in Thessaloniki today. The conference is to approve the setting up of an Association of Balkan News Agencies and decide where it will be based.
June 23 - The third regular meeting of the standing Bulgarian-Turkish committee on the implementation of the cooperation agreement, concluded by the Bulgarian and the Turkish interior ministries, ended with the signing of a protocol, Georgi Lambov, Chief Secretary of the Bulgarian interior Ministry said. The sides' delegations, which had talks from June 19 to 23, reached an agreement on the exchange of operative information, technicians and trainees. Lambov said the meeting had passed in the spirit of goodwill, comradeship and non-interference in the sides' internal affairs. He recalled the agreement makes provisions for cooperation in fighting organized crime, terrorism, drug trafficking, the smuggling of people and automobiles and the faking of identity papers. Bekir Aksoy, First Deputy Minister of the Interior, who led the Turkish delegation, said that by conducting cooperation, the two interior ministries would help advance bilateral relations in all other areas as well. He said that the Turkish delegation's visit had nothing to do with the forthcoming visit of President Suleyman Demirel to Bulgaria.
June 25 - The General Staff of the Bulgarian Army announces that in connection with the conduct of activities within the troop training schedule, an area enclosed within grid references as follows: Dourankoulak, point at sea 43 deg 40 min N, 29 deg 20 min E; point at sea 43 deg 20 min N, 29 deg 20 min E; point at sea 42 deg 47 min N, 29 deg 17 min E; Kranevo and the adjoining are space are declared dangerous for sea and air navigation as follows: from 1200 hrs to 2000 hrs local time on June 26; from 0830 hrs to 2000 hrs local time on June 27, and from 2100 hrs to 0100 hours local time on the next day; from 0830 hrs to 2000 hrs local time on June 28, and from 2100 to 0100 hrs local time on the next day; from 0830 hrs to 2000 hrs local time on June 29, and from 2100 hrs to 0100 hrs local time on the next day; from 0830 hrs to 2000 hrs local time on June 30.
June 23 - Vesselin Blagoev, Executive Director of the Privatization Agency, met representatives of more than 200 companies during his tour in Europe and Asia. The purpose of his visits to France, Belgium, the Nederlands and South Korea was to familiarize the business circles there with the possibilities of investing in Bulgaria and with the privatization programme of the Privatization Agency for 1995. "The Belgian Government will allocate Bfr 4,000 million to guarantee investments and commercial transactions in Bulgaria," Blagoev said adding that now Bulgaria had moved ahead and was considered less risky for investment. "Belgians describe the political and economic situation in Bulgaria as very stable," he said. Dutch bankers and entrepreneurs told Blagoev they were much interested in the Bulgarian units put up for privatization. The signing of an agreement on reciprocal protection of investments would promote contacts, Blagoev was told. In France the Privatization Agency Executive Director conferred with representatives of 40 companies and banks. "Daewoo, Hyundai, Samsung and Lucky Gold Star are three of South Korea's leading companies that showed interest in Bulgaria's economy," Blagoev said. Potential foreign investors showed interest in enterprises operating in various Bulgarian industries: construction, electornics, electrical engineering, automobiles, chemistry, textiles, tourism etc. Four of the ten largest conglomerates in the world are interested in the Sodi company in Devnya (Northeastern Bulgaria).
"Demokratsiya" runs an extensive interview with Yugoslavia's Foreign Minister Vladislav Jovanovic. In his view, the statute granted to the Bulgarian minority in Serbia is in compliance with the highest international standards. "All problems can be settled and do not seem insoluble. Otherwise the issue of the Bulgarian minority will be used by those forces in Bulgaria and abroad, which do not favour the promotion of relations between Bulgaria and Serbia," Jovanovic says. "We are interested in the development of our cooperation; the Bulgarian minority should be a bridge in the promotion of our relations," he says. In connection with statements of the permanent representative of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia to the UN in Geneva on the rights of the Serbian minority in Bulgaria, Mr Jovanovic says: "Our mission leader in Geneva made these statements in response to a provocative question by his Bulgarian colleague, who misused the issue of the situation of the Bulgarian minority, seeking to defame Yugoslavia. For our part the statement was not intended as a provocation; we wanted to compare the treatment of the national minorities in Serbia with that in Bulgaria. While Yugoslavia recognizes national minorities, Bulgaria treats them as ethnic groups," Jovanovic says. Asked if Yugoslavia clams the existence of a Serbian minority in Bulgaria, Mr Jovanovic says that this is not a problem of the relations between the two states. "We shall seek to settle the problems, rather than create them. But if certain forces in Bulgaria make ill use of the situation of the minorities, we shall consider this an inadmissible interference in our affairs," says Yugoslavian Foreign Minister. A signed commentary in "Demokratsiya" on the interview with Jovanovic says that the most difficult and tricky issue which Bulgarian Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski should have raised during his meetings in Belgrade this week, was about the future of the Bulgarians in the Western outlands (Bulgarian lands seeded to Yugoslavia under the 1919 Neuilly Peace Treaty).
BELGRADE, June 18-20
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski paid an official visit to Yugoslavia. Minister Pirinski was received by Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic and the Yugoslavian Prime Minister Radoje Kontic.
LUXEMBOURG, June 19-21
Bulgarian Interior Minister Lyubomir Nachev attended the meeting of interior and justice ministers of the 15 European Union (EU) member-states and of the six associate EU members.
ATHENS, June 19-20
Bulgarian Prime Minister Zhan Videnov paid an official visit to Greece. Prime Minister Videnov was received by Greek President Costis Stephanopoulos. The Bulgarian and Greek prime ministers signed a joint declaration.
BRATISLAVA, June 19-21
Bulgarian Defence Minister Dimiter Pavlov paid a visit to Slovakia. Minister Pavlov and his Slovak counterpart Jan Sitek signed an agreement on cooperation between the two countries' defence ministries.
SOFIA, June 22
Bulgaria and Cuba signed an agreement on cooperation between the two countries' foreign ministries.
June 23 (BTA) - "Demokratsiya" writes that representatives of the Israeli Chamber of Commerce will be visiting Bulgaria from June 25 through July 2. The delegation of 12 businessmen will be led by Moshe Behar, President of the Bulgarian-Israeli Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The guests will have talks at the ministries of trade, industry, transport and agriculture. They requested a special meeting with officials of the Bulgarian Committee on Tourism. There is an idea to set up a fund with the Israeli Government which would provide help for small and medium-size businesses in Bulgaria, the paper writes.
European Union's Ambassador to Bulgaria Thomas O'Sullivan has promised to raise money for the Deveopment of Industry Fund, "Standart News" says referring to Industry Minister Kliment Vouchev. Yesterday the Government issued a decree on the establishment of the Fund. The money, raised from enterprises and the fees collected by the Industry Ministry, will be used to fund scientific research and development, "Standart News" writes.
Rover's plant in Varna (on the northern Black Sea coast) will be opened formally on September 8, 1995, "Standart News" reports citing Philip Burley, Rover's director for Eastern Europe. Initially it will provide jobs for 300 persons and investments amounting to 18 million pounds, the paper says.
Germany's Kerpen increased the amount of cement it wants to buy from the plant in Beli Izvor (Western Bulgaria). Having concluded a contract for 50,000 t, now the company requests 500,000 t. The proceeds from the deal will be 10 million dollars.