Deputy Minister Velik Zanchev opens regional transport conference in Belgrade

We maintain an excellent dialogue with our Serbian neighbors and we are actively working on the construction of the missing transport connections between the two countries, said the Deputy Minister of Transport, Information Technology and Communications Velik Zanchev, at the opening of the regional conference Transport and Energy – connectivity between the Western Balkans and the EU, which took place yesterday in Belgrade, Serbia. The event is part of the Bulgarian Presidency agenda and was jointly organized by representatives of the two governments.

“Bulgaria is in the active phase of the construction of railway connections with Serbia”, pointed out Deputy Minister Zanchev and added that currently the state is investing significant resources in the completion of the railway highway from the Serbian to the Turkish and Greek borders at the town of Svilengrad and to the Black Sea. He highlighted that within this program period some 320 km of railways will be modernized along these lines and by 2023 the largest part of the corridor is to be completed.

“A key topic for the Bulgarian Presidency is still the regional connectivity of the Western Balkans – transport, communication, energy, educational and digital connectivity”, underlined the Deputy Minister. He added that the enlargement policy of the European Union that we aim at as President of the Council of the EU, is the most effective tool for ensuring peace, stability and prosperity in the Western Balkans.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure of the Republic of Serbia Zorana Mihajlović, representatives of the European Commission, and representatives of the Bulgarian and Serbian transport and energy ministries participated in the event.