President Barack Obama participates in an Ambassador Credentialing Ceremony with His Excellency Tihomir Anguelov Stoytchev, Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria, in the Oval Office, June 27, 2016
On June 27, 2016 the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary H.E. Mr. Tihomir Stoytchev presented his credentials to the President of the United States of America Barack Obama.
During the meeting Ambassador Stoytchev emphasized the strategic partnership between the two countries and the activity of the established five working groups for strategic dialogue in key areas of cooperation: defense and security; counterterrorism; energy security; the rule of law; education and people-to-people ties.
The Ambassador pointed out that security cooperation was the cornerstone of the bilateral relations, and its significance becomes even greater in view of the changed security environment. The excellent partnership between the law enforcement institutions of the two countries was emphasized as well.
Ambassador Stoytchev reiterated Bulgarian Government’s political will to reform the judicial system. As a key priority of the country the Ambassador pointed out the diversification of the energy sources and underlined Bulgaria’s support for the Southern Gas Corridor. The government’s determination to build interconnector links with its neighbors and the particular importance of the interconnector with Greece were reiterated.
The Bulgarian Ambassador also noted the need to work towards promoting trade and expanding the economic and investment cooperation between Bulgaria and the United States. A positive development is the increase of the number of Bulgarian companies conducting successful business in America.
Ambassador Stoytchev stated that the efforts for the inclusion of Bulgaria in the US Visa Waiver Program as well as for the conclusion of a Bilateral Agreement on Social Security would continue. He emphasized the significance of those two issues to the Bulgarian government, as well as to the Bulgarian citizens.
The Ambassador underscored Bulgaria’s role as a factor of stability in South East Europe and urged the American side to continue its engagement in the region.
President Barack Obama congratulated the Bulgarian Ambassador with his appointment and expressed his willingness to deepen the strong relations between the two countries.
In his address the American President underlined that Bulgaria and the United States were bound by warm friendship. The President expressed appreciation for the participation of the Bulgarian military contingents “shoulder to shoulder” with the American troops in Afghanistan, Iraq and Kosovo. He especially highlighted that the United States viewed Bulgaria as a leader and a factor of stability in South East Europe.
President Obama welcomed the country’s efforts in achieving regional energy security through diversification of sources and routes of supply and building gas interconnector links with the neighboring countries. He expressed hope that the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership would contribute to the increase of American investments in Bulgaria.