The presidents of Bulgaria and Serbia, Rumen Radev and Aleksandar Vucic discussed earlier today in Sofia options for furtherance in bilateral cooperation.

Rumen Radev termed Vucic’s visit important not only for Bulgaria and Serbia but for the whole region of the Western Balkans. Pointing out that Serbia’s ambitious goal to join EU in 2025 was fully feasible the president vowed that Bulgaria would continue to support the efforts of its western neighbor for reform and its readiness for dialogue with all countries in the region.

Rumen Radev voiced approval of latest amendments to Serbian law regarding the Bulgarian minority but noted that further efforts were needed to support the progress of the region where it is concentrated.

Emerging from the talks Aleksandar Vucic said that the Serbian side planned to modernize the railroad to Nis, expected to get substantial natural gas supplies through its future gas connection with Bulgaria and was open for Bulgarian investments in its economy.

Regarding the Bulgarian minority Aleksandar Vucic said that for the time being 1031 pupils were studying the Bulgarian language in Serbia and added that he expected everything possible would be done to make sure this number grew.

In April, the presidents of Bulgaria and Serbia would visit together the Western Outlands where most of the Bulgarian minority in Serbia lives. This became clear after talks between President Rumen Radev and counterpart Alexander Vucic in Sofia.

Later, at a meeting with National Assembly President Tsveta Karayancheva, Serbia's President Vucic expressed gratitude for Bulgaria's support for his country on the road to full EU membership.