The series of lectures on Foreign Policy for the Master’s students of the Public Administration and Diplomacy program continue with a lecture from the Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria Hristo Gudjev.
With the guidance of Professor Nexhmedin Spahiu, Ambassador Gudjev touched on many interesting topics related to the history of the creation of the Bulgarian state. He spoke about the territorial position of Bulgaria over the centuries, the invasions and wars fought, and its independence.
Afterwards, Ambassador Gudjev discussed the Bulgarian Foreign Policy and its role in strengthening the diplomatic relations with other countries, with the attending students.
Speaking about Bulgaria’s EU integration, Ambassador Gudjev highlighted two important issues: “What could the EU do for Bulgaria, and what could Bulgaria do for the EU?”
“EU membership was a great challenge and opportunity for Bulgaria in all aspects: political, societal and economical, as everything had to conform to European standards. Only by meeting these standards could a quality life be achieved. “Bulgaria has not experienced serious unrest and conflicts, although it has occasional problems that can be resolved,” Gudjev said.
While speaking about the model of governance in Bulgaria, the Bulgarian diplomat showed that over 3% of the population in Bulgaria belong to the Roma community, while more than 10% belong to the Turkish community and that they are involved in all levels of government.
Another component that was discussed in this lecture was security, given that Bulgaria represents not only the eastern border of the EU but also borders with some countries of Southeast Europe, that have been known to be areas of unrest. Therefore, the Bulgarian government thinks Bulgaria can play an important role in helping these southeastern countries to overcome their problems and bring them closer to the EU, which is also one of the goals expressed at the Thessaloniki Summit. This is one reason Bulgaria pays special attention to cooperation with countries in the region and beyond, Gudjev said. According to him, great efforts are being made in Bulgaria to develop good cooperation with neighboring countries because it is in the interest of the Bulgarian state to cooperate in all areas, such as economy, security, politics, culture, science, and education.
Bulgaria has proven to be a pillar of stability and understanding upon which the cooperation between the Republic of Bulgaria and of Kosovo is built.
Bulgarian Ambassador Hristo Gudyev, in addition to holding this lecture for the students, held a meeting with the Rector of AAB College, Dr. Sc. Bujar Demjaha and the vice-rector for Cooperation and International Relations, Prof. Ass. Dr. Venera Llunji, where they discussed the possibilities of cooperation between the Embassy of Bulgaria and AAB College in the field of education, exchange of experiences, various cultural activities, participation in conferences, exchange of students and staff, and other higher education topics.
