The US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland paid a working visit to Bulgaria within the frame of her European trip after she visited Lithuania, Russia and Romania. Victoria Nuland visits Bulgaria for the third time in less than two years only. What happened during her latest visit?

Victoria Nuland’s visit is apparently linked with the US strategic interests in the region and these are a prerequisite for the developments in bilateral relations. During last year’s visit of US Secretary of State John Kerry to Sofia, and the USA established four working groups in the following fields: security, energy diversification, law supremacy and cultural relations. One year later during Nuland’s latest visit it became clear that that form of interrelation turned effective. The fifth working group which deals with issues related to fight against terrorism also received positive assessment.

Victoria Nuland and the Bulgarian officials also accentuated on energy-related topics during their meeting on Monday, in particular the progress of the gas interconnection project with neighboring Greece. The USA advocated actively the signing of that investment agreement, because according to the agreement, some US companies would receive access to gas markets in this region. However, the USA has already a substantial presence in Bulgaria’s power engineering field through AES and Contour Global energy companies which operate in Maritsa East Energy Complex in South Bulgaria. That is why Victoria Nuland was well-acquainted with the negotiations between these companies and the Bulgarian Energy Holding for a EUR 650 million loan which would help the National Electric Company pay its debts to the abovementioned US companies. According to an agreement signed in August, 2015, when the overdue liabilities are paid off, the US companies would reduce their prices of availability. The Independent Bulgarian Energy Exchange started to function on the day of Victoria Nuland’s arrival to Sofia. Within this context, Victoria Nuland was informed that the full liberalization of the energy market in Bulgaria would change the situation in the country’s power engineering sector and that Bulgaria and the US thermal power plants will have to revise the terms and conditions under the contracts for electricity purchase.

The project about the construction of the seventh nuclear unit at Kozloduy NPP was not a subject of the talks during Victoria Nuland’s working visit to Sofia. In other words, the project would not be fulfilled by the US energy giant Westinghouse due to financial obstacles. However, it does not mean that Bulgaria’s relations with Westinghouse have been suspended. Premier Boyko Borissov mentioned recently that the company continued to participate in the development of the country’s power engineering and that Westinghouse recommended a Chinese investor as a potential partner under the construction of a new nuclear facility in Kozloduy.

Bulgaria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Daniel Mitov, Bulgaria’s Deputy Premier for EU Funds and Economic Policies Tomislav Donchev and Bulgaria’s Minister of Economy Temenuzhka Petkova also took part in the talks with Victoria Nuland.  The US Assistant Secretary of State paid a special attention to defense-related topics and held a separate meeting with Bulgaria’s Minister of Defense Nikolay Nenchev. Mrs. Nuland and Nikolay Nenchev discussed the possibilities for future modernization of the Bulgarian Armed Forces, and in particular the country’s Air Forces. The problems of Bulgaria’s military aviation have been on for years, but little has been done due to financial difficulties and restrictions. The latest development in that direction regards an agreement with Poland about the repair of the Russian MIG-29 fighter planes. However, Bulgaria has not yet abandoned its intention to receive US fighter jets of the F-16 type.

Some of the topics discussed between Victoria Nuland and her Bulgarian hosts are topical and part of the agenda of the relations between Bulgaria and Russia. The Bulgarian-Russian Intergovernmental Commission for Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation is expected to start functioning again after a five-year break and Bulgaria may use some elements from its dialogue with the USA, especially in the energy field, to precise its positions in the dialogue with Russia.

English version: Kostadin Atanasov