Europe and Asia have achieved quite a lot together. Over the past 10 years we have managed to double the volume of our bilateral trade. However, in order to deepen our partnership, we need even stronger ties between our two continents at all levels - governments, businesses and also among the people. This is what President Rosen Plevneliev said in the statement he made at the 11th summit of heads of state and government of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), which opened today in the capital of Mongolia Ulan Bator.
The Bulgarian Head of State emphasized that real success in inter-regional cooperation can be achieved only if Europe and Asia unite around a shared, long-term vision for the future.
“Twenty years ago, we together supported the idea of bringing Europe and Asia closer together because we realized that peace and stability could be ensured only through cooperation,” the Head of State said in his statement. Currently the format of regional dialogue includes 53 partners representing 60 percent of the world's population and over 60 per cent of global trade. “Our actions are changing the world and hopefully they are helping to make it safer and more prosperous,” President Rosen Plevneliev said.
The Head of State emphasized that during the forthcoming Bulgarian EU Presidency in 2018 his country will lay emphasis on organizing meetings of ASEM ministers of culture, economy and finance.
“Globalization and modern technology are connecting our regions more than ever before and by encouraging connectivity further, we will bring our countries and peoples even closer together,” Rosen Plevneliev said.
In the President’s words, given Bulgaria’s strategic location in Southeastern Europe, the country will remain a regional transit hub for goods and services from Asia to the common European market. “We are aware how important it is to improve our connectivity and we do our best to modernize our infrastructure. We are not speaking only about transport links by land, sea and air, but also about digital infrastructure,” President Rosen Plevneliev emphasized.
The Head of State further recalled that Bulgaria is a leading country in our region in promoting innovation and building innovation ecosystems.
Rosen Plevneliev further told the participants in the ASEM meeting that Bulgaria will continue to pursue a balanced foreign policy and reinforce its status as an “island of stability” and a model of the tolerant coexistence of various ethnic and religious groups despite the myriad of crises in the world.
11 presidents and vice-presidents, 23 prime ministers, among which German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French Prime Minister Manual Valls, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang , and European Commission and the European Council Presidents Jean-Clause Junker and Donald Tusk attended the summit in Ulan Bator.