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Vladimir Mitev
- Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe
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The Romanian foreign minister answered Baricada’s question at a joint press conference with the Bulgarian ambassador in Bucharest.
”The problems of the Danubean and Black Sea regions should occupy a higher place on the EU’s agenda”, said the Romanian foreign minister Teodor Meleşcanu during a press conference in the representative office of the European Commission in Bucharest. The press conference took place on 15 January 2018. Hours after, the prime minister Mihai Tudose resigned as a result of a political crisis within the government`s ranks and a conflict with the strong man in the Social Democratic Party Liviu Dragnea. However the press conference`s topic was not the political crisis, but the priorities of the Bulgarian presidency of the EU, which has just started. They were presented by the Bulgarian ambassador to Romania Todor Churov. The event was attended by almost 50 diplomats and journalists from 21 media organisations, including Baricada.
Asked by the Bulgarian site what concrete initiatives could give sense and content to the Romanian interests towards the Black Sea region during the forthcoming Romanian presidency of the EU – and whether the idea for a European macroregion of the Black Sea is among them, Meleşcanu answered that Bucharest sees its interest in two directions of activity. The first one is the mutual encouragement for the Black Sea countries’ development in the frameworks of the various regional structures for cooperation. The second one is the EU’s stronger involvement in the region, which would mean not only more European funds for it, but also a transfer of knowledge, values and good management. According to Meleşcanu such activities would inevitably bring the EU and the countries of the Black Sea region closer.
The full recording of the questions to the Romanian foreign minister and his answers can be seen with English subtitles here:
