President Radev: Bulgaria and Azerbaijan have the potential to develop long-term and mutually beneficial partnerships in industries with high added value

Azerbaijan is a reliable strategic partner of Bulgaria in the South Caucasus region and in the wider Black Sea region, and the intensive bilateral political dialogue in recent years is a testimony to the deepening relations. President Rumen Radev stated this in an interview with the analytical economic magazine "Caspian Energy". The latest issue of the publication is dedicated to Azerbaijan's hosting of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Baku, where our country was represented by the Bulgarian head of state within the framework of the summit.

In response to a question about the potential for the development of relations between Bulgaria and Azerbaijan, Rumen Radev stated the readiness of our country to upgrade the economic partnership both bilaterally and in the context of strategic energy cooperation with the EU, which provides opportunities for reliable gas supplies for Central and Eastern Europe through the Southern Gas Corridor. The joint declaration on strengthening the strategic partnership between Bulgaria and Azerbaijan, which we signed with President Ilham Aliyev in Baku in May this year, reflects our common will to expand the scope of our partnership in priority areas such as energy and connectivity and to give impetus to development in others regions, says Rumen Radev in the interview.

"Connectivity in all its dimensions - energy, infrastructure, transport, digital and technology - is key to fostering sustainable economic growth, competitiveness and development, as well as increasing our resilience in the context of a volatile security environment," Rumen stated in the interview Radev. The President emphasizes Bulgaria's consistent commitment to improving energy connectivity together with Azerbaijan and a number of Eastern European countries. "These efforts and initiatives increase the security not only of Bulgaria, but also of the region of the Western Balkans, as well as of Ukraine and Moldova, and of Europe as a whole," the head of state said. An example in this regard is the "Solidarity Ring" project, which enables security of supply and diversification for Central and South-Eastern Europe in a fast, efficient and affordable way of additional quantities of gas from Azerbaijan. The significance of this initiative, supported by Bulgaria, was reported by the European Commission, which expressed categorical support for its implementation, Rumen Radev also states. The President considers the opening of an office of the state oil company of the Republic of Azerbaijan SOCAR in Sofia as a positive step.

The Bulgarian head of state notes the need to promote contacts between businesses and the prospects for developing long-term and mutually beneficial partnerships in the field of high-tech industries and industries with high added value, unmanned aerial vehicles, the automotive sector and clean technologies. "In the last few years, Bulgaria has been developing sectors such as robotics and mechatronics in order to promote investments in machinery and automation in various sectors," President Radev points out and adds that the largest share of Bulgaria's total exports is electronics, and at the same time most foreign investments in us are precisely in this sphere. "Bulgaria is rapidly expanding industrial zones in various regions, which encourages investments in new sectors with high added value and contributes to the implementation of Bulgarian and foreign projects," says the president. Rumen Radev also identifies joint investments in defense, in export-oriented areas such as industrial equipment, products of the food and beverage, pharmaceutical, and perfumery industries, as promising for the expansion of bilateral relations.

In the context of Azerbaijan's hosting of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, President Rumen Radev points to the need for cooperation for a timely response to the changing climate and strengthening the resilience of countries. We will be more effective if we make joint efforts and share technologies, resources and approaches to address climate challenges, the head of state said, adding that the catastrophic natural disasters we are witnessing are an unfortunate reminder that the world must adapt to a changing climate. Transparent, open discussions about climate challenges can help raise awareness of the problem, the president added. Rumen Radev states that Bulgaria has made significant progress in reducing greenhouse emissions. The transition to a climate-neutral and circular economy must be socially just. "Our main goal is to guarantee the sustainability of this transformation, without violating the standard and quality of life of the people and the competitiveness of the economy," states President Rumen Radev in his interview.