28.04.2022
Repair of Ukrainian equipment in Bulgarian plants: that was the request for military technical assistance addressed by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. Prime Minister Kiril Petkov pointed out that an appropriate decision would be taken next week and vowed Bulgaria’s staunch support for Ukraine in the war. “Ukraine will be the victor,” the Prime Minister said and stressed that the democratic world supports Kyiv. At the two leaders’ meeting, the Ukrainian side made a commitment to provide full assistance so that the Bulgarian ship Rojen could sail safe back home with its crew on board. A point of the discussion was the preparedness of Varna to become a logistics hub for the grain that cannot be exported via Ukrainian ports.
At their meeting in Kyiv Kiril Petkov and Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed also opportunities for bilateral cooperation in the energy sector and highlighted the potential for the export of cheap Ukrainian electricity to Bulgaria and the Balkans. Alongside, Bulgaria can offer support to Ukraine by means of the Trans-Balkan Pipeline to supply gas from the Liquefied Natural Gas terminals from Greece and Turkey. Kiril Petkov pointed out that significantly larger amounts of gas would sell at better prices, which is in the interest of both countries.
Prime Minister Kiril Petkov received a personal invitation from President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for Bulgaria to participate in the large-scale program for Ukraine’s postwar reconstruction. This will provide a number of opportunities for economic cooperation, including Bulgarian building contractors that might join the effort to rebuild the Ukrainian cities. Prime Minister Kiril Petkov reassured President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Bulgaria’s support for Ukraine’s European integration. This is where Ukraine belongs to, Kiril Petkov said firmly.
“Today the whole civilized world, Bulgaria included, sides with Ukraine,” said Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he thanked Prime Minister Kiril Petkov and Bulgaria. Volodymyr Zelenskyy was firm that today, as never before, Ukraine needs the support of its trusted friends to uphold the right to life of its people and its state and its European future. “This struggle is not just a struggle for Ukraine. Today we, in Ukraine, defend the values of all Europe, of the entire world and the freedom of each European nation,“ Volodymyr Zelenskyy said further. In his words, this battle will decide, among other things, whether the other European nations will live in freedom and democracy.
