Foreign Minister Vigenin Receives Bulgaria’s Honorary Consuls

Bulgarian Foreign Minister Kristian Vigenin welcomed the country's honorary consuls from around the world for a conference at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

In the first part of his opening address, Minister Vigenin outlined the priorities of Bulgaria's foreign policy.

"Bulgaria aims to conduct an active, but also reasonable foreign policy, on the basis of guaranteeing its national security and interests, as well as within the framework of the European Union and NATO. We are interested in developing a unified, strong and effective European Union, relying on principles of solidarity and the sustainable utilization of funds", Vigenin opened.

Bulgaria's top diplomat reiterated the key role of NATO for safeguarding regional security and stressed that Bulgaria supports its enlargement. He added that the country seeks to play a leading role in regional diplomacy, both in the Balkans and the Black Sea region.

Maintaining constructive and mutually beneficial relations with global powers is another of Bulgaria's priorities.

"It is extremely important for us to continue our strategic partnership with the United States of America, due to our shared values and the country's leading international role. At the same time, without putting into question Bulgaria's strategic orientation, we also have an interest in maintaining mutually beneficial relations with Russia. The linguistic, cultural, historic and religious closeness our people share, are an important factor in our relations", Vigenin said, adding that Bulgaria stands firmly behind the territorial integrity of Ukraine.

In the latter part of his speech, Vigenin talked about the important role of Bulgaria's honorary consuls.

"The Republic of...