site.btaBulgaria, Greece, Romania Sign Action Plan for Joint Transport Projects

Bulgaria, Greece and Romania signed an action plan for joint transport projects at a conference on the development of Southeast Europe in Brussels on Tuesday.

Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Peev signed the document on Bulgaria’s behalf.

The three countries had come to recognize the need to work together on connectivity, Peev told Bulgarian media after the ceremony. He said they had the full support of the European Commission, the European Parliament and European financial institutions. Developing the rail link between the three countries was among their key joint projects, he added.

Transport and security need to be more closely linked, but a lack of coordination is the main obstacle, Peev told the conference. He also pointed to mistrust in the region as an obstacle. He called for more bridges across the Danube and said the capacity of the Sofia-Plovdiv railway line needed to be doubled.

There is more money than ideas for connectivity projects, MEP Andrey Novakov (GERB/EPP) said. Connectivity is a matter of security, which is now a top priority, he added. He said the rail link between Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia had been under construction for 120 years because politics had taken precedence.

Better transport links are needed in the region to boost tourism, investment and trade, European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism Apostolos Tzitzikostas said. The benefits of regional connectivity extend beyond national borders, he added, while roads and ports form the backbone of the economy. He said private investors were badly needed to develop the transport network.