BULGARIA AND UK STRONGLY CONDEMN PARIS TERROR ATTACKS

“Bulgaria and the United Kingdom strongly condemn the terrorist attacks in Paris and express solidarity with the French people at this time ", said Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister, Daniel Mitov, on 14th of January, after the meeting with his British counterpart, UK’s Foreign Secretary, Philip Hammond, who is on official visit in Bulgaria at the invitation of Minister Mitov.

Philip Hammond and Daniel Mitov agreed to continue intensive cooperation between the two countries on the security and diversification of energy supplies in South-Eastern Europe and within the European Union.

The Foreign Secretary also met with Bulgaria’s President Plevneliev and Prime Minister Boiko Borissov.

Daniel Mitov and Philip Hammond expressed concern on the escalation of terrorism and exchanged views on the need to deepen the bilateral coordination to fight all forms of terrorism.

Hammond and Mitov talked about the common agenda within NATO and how this organization to remain the cornerstone for security in the world. Mitov expressed willingness to extend the bilateral dialogue in the area of energy. He said that European Energy Union and gas interconnections with Greece and Romania were of key interest to Bulgaria.

Hammond has said that the sanctions against Russia should remain in place until the country starts fulfilling its commitments under the Minsk agreement and until it stops military actions aimed at redesigning the map of Europe.

“We will continue to resist such actions by Russia and will insist on increasing the decisiveness of the European Union ", Philip Hammond said.

Within the bilateral relations, Minister Mitov highlighted the contribution of the Bulgarians who work and study in the UK to the British economy.

“There is a structural defect in the social system and this is a problem when the number of migrants increases’, said Hammond.

The UK’s Foreign Secretary told Bulgarian media that the changes in the social area in the UK, concerning migrants, will be compliant with the EU legislation.

Hammond remarked that UK wass trying to make the system less vulnerable and to overcome the imbalance in the society in terms of the least educated people in the UK. The jobs that they may take are now taken by migrants who often are more skilled and are ready to work for less money.

Bilateral trade and economic cooperation, partnership in the European Union and NATO and cooperation in the area of energy and security were among the topics discussed between Philip Hammond and Bulgaria’s Prime Minister Borissov and President Plevneliev.