Opening a Bulgarian consular mission in Taraclia will bring the Bulgarians in Moldova nearer to their homeland and to Europe, President Rosen Plevneliev said at the Grigorij Tsamblak State University of Taraclia, where he met undergraduates and lecturers of the only Bulgarian institute of higher education abroad.
The Head of State said that the Moldovan authorities have the political will to preserve the Taraclia region as an individual territorial-administrative unit after the reform Moldova plans in this sphere is conducted. Bulgaria also contributed to waiving the visa regime for short-term trips of Moldovan citizens to the European Union and this support was highly appreciated by Moldova’s political leadership, the President added and summarized the results of his official visit to the Republic of Moldova.
“We would like the Bulgarians in Moldova to progress and to enjoy prospects. You are the real symbol of the Bulgarian spirit – modest, well-intentioned, hardworking, people who know their roots and defend the honor and messages their ancestors conveyed. You are the strongest bridge of friendship between Bulgaria and Moldova and the foundation our relations are based on,” were the words with which the Head of State addressed the undergraduates and lecturers from the university.
In his speech the Head of State recalled the deed of the Bessarabian Bulgarians during the Bulgarian Renaissance and their contribution to building the foundations of the third Bulgarian state. The Bulgarians from Bessarabia actively participate in Bulgaria’s social and political life, the President recalled.
“The region is our common house and only together can we develop it in a peaceful and democratic way. I will encourage the Bulgarian business, the local authorities and the Bulgarian universities to be more active and to seek cooperation with the Bulgarian community in Taraclia, where there is a great potential,” the Head of State further said. The President told the representatives of the Bulgarian national minority in Moldova that he will encourage Bulgarian companies in the ICT sector, pharmaceuticals, and the light industry to establish contacts with the local authorities in Taraclia and partners in the region.
An agreement was also reached with the Moldovan authorities to transform the state university in Taraclia into a branch of a Bulgarian institute of higher education, President Rosen Plevneliev further said and added that the Angel Kunchev university in Russe has already expressed interest in the implementation of the project.
Our compatriots demanded at the meeting with the Bulgarian President that a Bulgarian cultural center in Taraclia is established, which will work so as to attract more Bulgarian investments in the region of Moldova with a compact Bulgarian community and ensure additional information about the opportunities for education, training and career development and also about the career centres such as the ones working with universities in Bulgaria.