site.btaBulgaria to Maintain Active Political Dialogue with Ukraine, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Says

Bulgaria will continue to maintain an active political dialogue with Ukraine and work to expand practical cooperation in areas of mutual interest, including energy, infrastructure connectivity and defence, Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova said on Wednesday during the fifth Ukraine-Southeast Europe Summit in Kyiv, the Foreign Ministry said in a press release.

During her visit to the Ukrainian capital, Petrova held meetings with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha, Serhii Fedorenko, a member of the Executive Board and Chief Commercial Officer of Ukraine's state-owned oil and gas company Naftogaz, and Oleksii Riabchyn, the company's Chief International Relations and Sustainability Officer.

Petrova stressed that the large Bulgarian national minority in Ukraine, the country's largest historic Bulgarian diaspora abroad, remains a natural focus of bilateral relations and an important factor underpinning both countries' shared interest in deepening their close cooperation.

She also highlighted the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation in the energy sector and discussed opportunities to increase natural gas supplies. Petrova underscored Bulgaria's key role in enhancing Eastern Europe's energy connectivity and expanding gas transmission capacity to Ukraine and Moldova. According to her, these efforts will be crucial both for Ukraine's energy security during the coming winter and for the country's long-term post-war reconstruction.

As part of her visit, Petrova also took part in a ceremony honouring the memory of fallen Ukrainian defenders.