Bulgarian President’s visit to Portugal continues

Bulgaria’s President, Rumen Radev, is on a two-day visit to Portugal.

His programme on 31^st of January includes talks with the Prime Minister of Portugal, António Costa and the President of the Assembly of the Portuguese Republic, Eduardo Ferro Rodriguez.

Later, Bulgaria’s president will meet with the Mayor of Lisbon, Fernando Medina, who will present him with the honorary key of the city at a solumn ceremony.

In the evening, the Head of State, will meet with Bulgarians who live and work in Portugal.

The state visit of Bulgaria’s President to Portugal is at the invitation of his counterpart, Marcelo Rebelo de Souza. An important focus in their talks on 30^th of January was the problems associated with the Mobility package. The two presidents also discussed key themes for the future of the EU, such as Brexit, upcoming elections, migration.

President Rumen Radev was welcomed with a solumn welcoming ceremony on the Square of the Empire, and then at the Jeronimos Monastery he laid a wreath on the grave of the great Portuguese poet Camoin.

During the talks in Belem palace, President Rumen Radev introduced his Portuguese counterpart to the Bulgarian position on the disputed Mobility Package.

President Radev reminded that the envisaged new rules will create serious problems for dozens of Bulgarians and will have a very negative effect on the Bulgarian economy, the growth of national income and employment.

Portugal is a country with which we have similar opinions about the effect of adopting the Package and its inconsistency with the main European principles, policies and values, Rumen Radev says. Getting assistance from Portugal in the EP could be exceptionally important.

As border countries, although located at both ends of Europe, Bulgaria and Portugal are confronted with similar problems related to migratory pressures. We have similar views also on the necessary reforms of European asylum policies, he added.

Rumen Radev, President of the Republic of Bulgaria: There should be centers, but not in the countries but centers outside the EU, where checks are made and where it is decided whether the asylum seeker is a migrant, a refugee from real military action, what capabilities he/she has and whether a country wants him/her.

Marcelo Rebelo de Souza, President of Portugal: It is very important to go further in the European efforts and to define a common European policy on migration and asylum. It is not possible, through bilateral initiatives, to solve these problems.

The two presidents are convinced that additional opportunities should be sought to promote bilateral trade and economic ties. In recent years there has been a significant increase in bilateral trade, but this growth starts at relatively low levels.

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