NEWS

The state visit of President Rosen Plevneliev in the People’s Republic of China started with a meeting held with the Bulgarian community in Beijing, with diplomats and friends of Bulgaria.

"What we should take from 2013 is what gave a meaning to the year, namely – the enormous human and moral potential and the creative civil energy. The active civil society succeeded because it imposed the debate on the justice in the state and public sensitivity to political action", President stated in his traditional New Year address to the nation.

Signing an agreement on good-neighborly relations and cooperation remains a priority for Bulgaria and is of crucial importance for gaining Bulgaria’s support for the beginning of the negotiations of the Republic of Macedonia on EU membership. President Rosen Plevneliev, who held a meeting with Federal President Heinz Fischer in Vienna, was adamant on this issue.

The democracies from the region of the Balkans need support to avoid stepping back from the achievements made with great efforts during the years of democratic transformation. “We need a new, second phase of democratic consolidation,” President Rosen Plevneliev said in his statement made during the Third annual meeting of the Center for Global Dialogue and Cooperation, held in Vienna.

The public energy today is creative and should not be wasted but devoted to effecting a positive change, to coming up with solutions and taking actions to the benefit of society. This is the politicians’ responsibility and the role of the ESC and of the National Council for trilateral cooperation, is very important in this respect, President Rosen Plevneliev said today. He attended the European civil debate titled: “Stronger Europe for Citizens,” held in Sofia on the occasion of the 10th anniversary since the establishment of the Economic and Social Council.