site.btaForeign Minister: Bulgaria and Saudi Arabia Have Significant Untapped Potential for Economic Partnership

On Wednesday, during a meeting with the Saudi Arabia's Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal bin Fadhil Alibrahim at the Munich Leaders Summit in AlUla, the Bulgarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Georg Georgiev said that "Bulgaria and Saudi Arabia have a significant untapped potential for economic partnership, which we must turn into tangible bilateral projects for the mutual benefit of our citizens and businesses“, as quoted in a press release from the Foreign Ministry.  

The two ministers discussed bilateral economic relations and investment cooperation, emphasizing the importance of Saudi Arabia's dynamic economic growth.

"Saudi Arabia's modernization efforts set a great example for Bulgaria in terms of economic relations, and our support for Riyadh's bid to host EXPO 2030 clearly demonstrates the importance we attach to our bilateral relations, particularly in the areas of economics and technology," Georgiev noted.

During the conversation, emphasis was placed on the importance of holding the upcoming inaugural meeting of the Mixed Committee for Economic Cooperation between the two countries. The ministers also discussed the possibility of signing key memorandums in the fields of economics, energy, mineral resources, education and sports.

"Bulgaria considers that holding a joint business and investment forum alongside the Mixed Committee will further enhance the importance of the partnership with Saudi Arabia," Georgiev said. 

The Bulgarian side chose the areas of energy, defence and security as well as that of advanced technologies as priorities for further cooperation. Bulgaria has expressed an interest in attracting Saudi investments in research and development, mechanical engineering, electronics and the chemical industry. "Bulgarian companies can be reliable partners for Saudi Arabia in many areas. There are excellent prospects for exporting high-quality Bulgarian goods and products," Minister Georgiev pointed out.

For his part, Minister Al-Ibrahim outlined the energy domain, defence and security as well as healthcare as a potentially significant areas of cooperation between Bulgaria and Saudi Arabia. "We have the opportunity to explore new areas of cooperation in the energy sector as well as in defence and security where we invest significant resources, in developing advanced technologies and producing unmanned aircraft. Healthcare is a sector in which we have the opportunity to share our experience and highly-qualified personnel," said minister Al-Ibrahim.

Both ministers expressed confidence that developing economic ties between Bulgaria and Saudi Arabia would strengthen the partnership between the two countries and will create new opportunities for cooperation in key sectors of mutual interest.