Prime Ministers of Bulgaria, Romania, Montenegro, North Macedonia meets to discuss consequences of war on SEE
Prime Ministers of Bulgaria, Romania, Montenegro, North Macedonia meets to discuss consequences of war on SEE

Sofia, Bulgaria: The leaders of Bulgaria, Romania, Montenegro, and North Macedonia carried out a meeting in the capital city of Bulgaria yesterday (March 28, 2022), where they discussed the consequences of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on the security of SEE (South-Eastern Europe). 

Prime Minister of Bulgaria – Kiril Petkov, speaking on the important matters discussed in the meeting, stated that discussion was also held on the two significant corridors that are – Corridor No. 8, which will be connecting Podgorica – Durres – Skopje – Sofia – Dimitrovgrad – Varna, as well as a corridor to pass through Alexandroupolis – Burgas – Varna – Constanta. 

PM Petkov asserted, “My goal is to have a coordinated Balkans on all topics. If this continues as we started, if cross-border cooperation is activated and we have a common defense strategy and economic cooperation, we can become the fastest growing region and work together to improve the lives of our fellow citizens.” 

“Russia has stopped shipping wheat, and Ukrainian ports are closed and unable to transport goods. We are also worried about a shortage of fertilizers a ban on exports to both countries. This could lead to supply problems across Europe. Therefore, we discussed organizing a meeting of agriculture ministers and ensuring that food security is a matter of regional, not just national, aiming to coordinate and help each other there will be a shortage in the region.” 

Besides all these discussions, the key focus of the meeting remained on highlighting ways to eradicate corruption. Prime Minister Petkov stated that corruption at the national level is a tool utilized by Russia to mark its influence on the region. 

Corrupted people are often targeted for foreign interest,” he added. Meanwhile, Prime Minister of Montenegro Zdravko Krivokapic cited, “This is a new beginning for us, which will give us the opportunity to start real work on what is really important – to talk less and work more – to work together, together.”