Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister met her Lebanese counterpart Gebran Bassil

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants of Lebanon Gebran Bassil is on his first official visit to Bulgaria at the invitation of his Bulgarian counterpart Ekaterina Zaharieva.

The topics discussed at a meeting on 29^th of March included the forthcoming return of Syrian refugees to their home country. Both foreign ministers believe that they should return voluntarily, in a secure environment, and that the international community should support this process. Lebanon's foreign minister also met with Bulgaria’s Parliament Speaker Tsvetka Karayancheva and President Rumen Radev. The head of state said Lebanon was most affected by refugee processes, and the European Union should engage more actively in strengthening stability in the Middle East region.

This is the first visit to Bulgaria by the foreign minister of Lebanon which is taking place at the invitation of Minister Zaharieva. The two discussed the possibility of launching a direct flight between Bulgaria and Lebanon. Around 5,000 people from Lebanon choose to spend their holidays in this country.

At a meeting with Gebran Bassil, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev pointed out that Lebanon is setting a positive example of religious and ethnic tolerance in the Middle East.

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants of Lebanon Gebran Bassil: Unlike Lebanon, Bulgaria has taken a more moderate stance on Syria refugees and has refused to accept illegal migrants. Lebanon, however, accepted all, but it is time for this to stop, as there is no justification for this migration any longer. Now we have to help for the restoration of Syria, so that people can return there.

Ekaterina Zaharieva, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs: Lebanon is one of the countries that has been heavily engaged in assisting Syrian refugees fleeing the war. According to official data, 1 million refugees from Syria are in Lebanon. Of course, the return of Syrian refugees should be accompanied by the beginning of the political process there.