site.btaPresident Iotova Holds Series of High-Level Meetings on Saturday at Munich Security Conference

ulgarian President Iliyana Iotova held a series of high-level meetings on Saturday on the sidelines of the 62nd Munich Security Conference, her press secretariat reported.

Iotova met with French President Emmanuel Macron and attended his address to the forum, focused on restoring Europe’s strong position internally and globally. She also held talks with European Council President Antonio Costa, with discussions centering on European Union enlargement to the Western Balkans.

Energy cooperation was high on the agenda in Iotova’s meeting with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. The two discussed deepening bilateral ties and key projects such as the Solidarity Ring gas initiative and the Caspian Sea–Black Sea–Europe Green Energy Corridor. Iotova underscored Bulgaria’s strategic role in Europe’s energy security and the need for greater energy independence.

In talks with Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, the focus fell on the upcoming Three Seas Initiative summit, EU cohesion and the need to avoid a “two-speed Europe,” as well as Ukraine’s EU accession process.

Iotova also met with Theodore Deutch, Chief Executive Officer of the American Jewish Committee, to discuss rising hate speech, anti-Semitism and the erosion of human rights protections. She stressed the need to return human rights to the forefront of the international agenda and highlighted Bulgaria’s historic rescue of its Jewish community during the Holocaust.