Bulgarian official calls for deepening ties with China under BRI

SOFIA, Jan. 28 (Xinhua) -- Zahari Zahariev, president of Bulgaria's National Association for the Belt and Road, on Wednesday called for deepening ties with China within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), highlighting broad prospects for bilateral cooperation in infrastructure.

Speaking at the association's General Assembly, Zahariev specifically noted the development of maritime connections with China, citing a BRI route running "from China, through the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus and the Black Sea, with Bulgaria serving as a gateway to Central and Eastern Europe and Europe as a whole."

He said municipal authorities in Bulgaria's Black Sea ports of Burgas and Varna, particularly Burgas, have expressed willingness to see the route pass through a joint project to construct a shared port center at Port Burgas.

Zahariev added that the pharmaceutical industry could be another area for cooperation with China, along with the development of Bulgaria's energy system.

Wang Min, charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Bulgaria, said at the assembly that China stands ready to continuously deepen its partnership with all countries, including Bulgaria, so that the BRI can become a path to prosperity, cooperation and opportunity, contributing to the stable growth of the global economy and the sound development of international economic and trade cooperation.