King, Bulgarian president to capitalise on countries’ strategic locations

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah and Bulgarian President Rumen Radev on Sunday agreed to increase cooperation between Jordan and Bulgaria at the economic, trade, investment, educational and tourism levels and benefit from both countries’ strategic locations to access international markets.

During a meeting held at Al Husseiniya Palace, in the presence of Her Majesty Queen Rania and Radev’s wife Desislava Radeva, the two leaders highlighted the “solid” ties between Amman and Sofia, according to a Royal Court statement.

The King, during expanded talks that were attended by senior officials from both countries, welcomed the president’s visit, describing it as an opportunity to enhance bilateral relations as the two countries celebrate the 50th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties this year. 

His Majesty added that there is an active Bulgarian community in the Kingdom, expressing delight at the presence of representatives from various government departments among Radev’s accompanying delegation, which will enable developing cooperation in economic and security fields, enhancing trade and benefitting from both countries’ young talents. 

The challenge facing Jordan and Bulgaria, as well as the entire international community, is the threat of global terrorism, the King said, noting that both countries are characterised by moderation and tolerance and see eye-to-eye on political developments. 

For his part, the Bulgarian president expressed his pleasure at visiting Jordan and hoped that it would contribute to building stronger cooperation in all fields.

He said that Bulgaria considers the Kingdom to be a “key partner” in the Middle East, noting that it represents an “oasis of stability” in the region. 

Radev also voiced appreciation for what Jordan has done over the years to achieve stability, and for its balanced stances and policies that enabled it to deal with surrounding crises in a “successful way”. 

All these efforts are received with gratitude and respect from Europe, particularly the Kingdom’s efforts in managing the refugee crisis, he added, noting the huge pressures on the Kingdom’s social, educational and health services due to hosting millions of refugees.

President Radev said that Bulgaria — and Europe — is committed to supporting the Kingdom’s efforts towards reaching regional stability, adding: “We stand together in the war against extremism and terrorism.”

The president also underlined the Jordanian-Bulgarian business forum, which was held earlier in the day and saw the participation of more than 30 representatives of Bulgaria’s private sector from the agricultural, ICT and military fields.

He said that his country is committed to exploring tools that can play a role in establishing joint ventures necessary to enter international markets, as both Jordan and Bulgaria have strategic geographical locations.

Radev also expressed his aspiration to develop a partnership with the Kingdom in its “advanced technology sector”, citing as well the educational and tourism fields as good opportunities for building on already “distinguished relations”.

Discussions between His Majesty and President Radev, which continued over a lunch banquet, addressed means to expand economic cooperation between the two countries’ private sectors and activating the joint Jordanian-Bulgarian committee for economic and trade cooperation. 

The talks also went over investment opportunities and incentives provided by the Jordanian economy in that regard, as well as the importance of exchanging expertise in the fields of higher education and scientific research, ICT, water, agriculture and energy. 

As for the latest regional developments, mainly the peace process between the Palestinians and the Israelis, King Abdullah highlighted the importance of intensifying international efforts aimed at pushing forward the peace process in accordance with a two-state solution that leads to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. 

Both leaders stressed the need to reach a political solution to the Syrian crisis that maintains the unity of Syria.

Discussions also covered regional and international efforts in the war against terrorism within a holistic approach, where His Majesty highlighting the importance of Bulgaria’s participation in the Aqaba process, a series of meetings launched by the King to address the terror threat. 

During his participation in the business forum, Radev said that Jordan enjoys security, stability and a strategic location in the region, as well as a good investment environment, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

At the event, hosted by the Amman Chamber of Commerce, Radev expressed his optimism in the future of the Jordanian-Bulgarian economic ties.

He stressed that Jordan is an “attractive investment destination”, noting that the event is a “good opportunity” to establish joint businesses, due to the Kingdom’s strategic location that makes it a regional trade hub.

Meanwhile, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates Ayman Safadi on Sunday met with Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ekaterina Zaharieva to discuss the implementation of the outcomes of His Majesty’s meeting with Radev.

The two ministers also discussed practical steps and programmes required to translate on the ground the envisioned cooperation in all fields, a Foreign Ministry statement said.

Both sides agreed to hold a meeting in Bulgaria to follow up on the progress in expanding cooperation and implementing joint projects launched by the two countries, according to the statement.