NEWS

The President: The trade agreement between the EU and the US will promote the economic growth and the investments in Bulgaria

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTPI) agreement between the European Union and the United States is expected to contribute to an annual growth of the GDP worth 0.4 up to 0.5 percent of the European and US economy by 2020 and would improve the life of 800 million people. This is what President Rosen Plevneliev said, opening the forum “Transatlantic economic cooperation for competitiveness and growth: Bulgaria’s prospects.”

If the Agreement is successfully implemented, every family in the European Union will earn more than 540 euros per year, and every US family – slightly more than 650 US dollars. It only takes removing the redundant fees and bureaucratic obstacles to the business environment, the President said before the participants in the discussion, organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bulgaria.

Rosen Plevneliev presented the Bulgarian position which supports the spirit and goals of the Agreement and said that the negotiations between the EU and the United States are a decisive step towards ensuring a strategic trans-Atlantic partnership.

“As one of the countries with stable fiscal indicators and sustainable economic growth in the past years, we support every effort to stimulate the economy, particularly by removing all bureaucratic obstacles posed to the business environment. The success of the negotiations would increase the American investments in Bulgaria and the bi-lateral trade in goods and services across the Atlantic will considerably expand. Many new jobs will also be created,” the President said.

The Head of State further emphasized that reaching a “new and comprehensive agreement” between the 28 EU member states and the United States is the only possible way to meet the challenges related to the economic crisis. “We cannot compare the current crisis and the present economic situation with the post-World War II destruction when the foundations of the future European Union were laid. However, today the citizens expect that the politicians will secure the conditions for a better life. Only by achieving a considerable economic growth on a global level can we fulfill the tasks the public has entrusted us with,” Rosen Plevneliev pointed out.

The Head of State highlighted Bulgaria’s major priorities with regard to the trans-Atlantic trade and investment partnership. Among them are removing the customs duties and improving the access to the US market, particularly of  Bulgarian agriculture goods, food products and industrial output; removing the non-tariff barriers to trade, harmonizing the regulatory framework and standards as well as the rules governing the origin of goods, and improving the access to services and to the public tenders in the United States.  Our country will also work to implement the rules for intellectual property and the geographic designations, Plevneliev added.

A basic principle Bulgaria will adhere to in the negotiations is securing preferential treatment of the small and medium-sized enterprises which are the backbone of market economy but nevertheless experience the greatest difficulties to reach foreign markets. Therefore, the President emphasized, one of the goals in the negotiations on the Agreement is to ensure cooperation in support of the small and medium-sized enterprises, to improve the access to information and find appropriate partners as well as meet market demand in the United States.

President Rosen Plevneliev reiterated that the visa regime for the Bulgarian citizens visiting the United States still restricts the free movement of people. “The solution of this problem requires the joint efforts of the two countries and can no way damage the good relations and the strategic partnership between Bulgaria and the United States,” the Head of State said in his statement at the forum.