 Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you for the opportunity to be here today in Dublin. Our ambassador to Dublin has been all over my office for quite some time to get me over to come and we finally managed to fit the schedule and it somehow worked that just before coming to Dublin I was in Wilton Park for a discussion on Bosnia and just before that I was in Kosovo for a discussion on Kosovo and that somehow Nicely transits into this trip to Dublin where we had a very productive and useful meetings yesterday with the foreign minister here To speak a little bit about what's going on in Europe and particularly what's going on in Europe by the end of this year and particularly in December and Bulgaria and Ireland seem to be countries that when they look at issues related to whether it's enlargement or whether it's Developments in Europe in general each from their own perspective and from their own history Somehow end up on a lot of the cases on the same page at the end We see things quite similarly On issues related to the developments in Europe and I think this creates a good Commonality where which means that particularly now we need to work much closer and in much greater coordination Bulgaria's the last has well until very soon it would have been only the last country to have joined the European Union And we're very happy to see Croatia Follow in footsteps and and very soon become a part of the European Union But I think that the challenges that we face today in in Europe So substantial that we should not try to understate them this we should try and Tackle them head-on and this we should try and tackle them In a manner which strengthens Europe and doesn't weaken it I begin with this because Often there's been there's now debate about you know Europe slipping into a multi-speed Formula for its future And you know whether it's a two-speed or a three-speed Europe or whatever you want to To call it. I think that there's a fundamental fear that we don't actually press the wrong gear and step into reverse Because that would be the biggest mistake we can make in In the manner in which we and tackle the crisis of the European Union now There's one piece of good news as far as we're concerned in this crisis And that is that it's quite sure now that it wasn't caused by enlargement And although cynics who kept saying that enlargement was a danger for Europe and it would lead to its collapse Seemed to have gotten it all wrong All if most if not all of the new member states some with difficulty Some with great difficulty are muddling through the situation as we speak But generally are not causing Trouble for the rest of the European Union What this crisis seems to have been caused of by is the fact that rules had been broken And consistently over a long period of time And how we respond to that Is really a great big challenge For us all I say this coming from a country that has gone through its own financial And economic crisis in 95 96 and 97 Having come out of it after a period of hyperinflation and almost a complete collapse of its banking sector With a national consensus on two things one that There is the the foremost and the most important thing for all Politicians in government and out of government is to keep the finances of the country stable And secondly to ensure that salaries do not grow Or outpace growth of productivity in that second bit We seem to have been inspired by Irish experiences over the last few decades Having reached that consensus in 96 in particular we've enshrined it in law And this is why years later even today With great limitations and with great sacrifice on on behalf of all of us Bulgaria manages to retain a budget deficit of Just under 3% this year And planning 1.5% for next year I say this with great difficulty because it does affect a lot of programs In the country and it means a massive overhaul of the public administration And the way things are done Overall, but the belief that the finance that's keeping the finances of a country Are the core of its stability is very much something that we have all taken to heart way before the crisis in Europe it started Of course what makes it easier for us is the fact that we Seem to have the lower taxes at lowest taxes in Europe a flat corporate 10% tax and a flat income tax of 10% so you're all very much welcome To come and relocate to Bulgaria, and I think our weather is a little bit better than here But This is this has been an important task And this is to get to this point has been an important task It's an important achievement to keep it to keep those levels Particularly because we are the poorest country in the European Union And we need to be able to catch up to the standards of living and to growth And productivity Levels in the rest of the European Union in Central Europe and the old member states so this Low tax base is a way in a way one of our instruments to try and stimulate growth and investment To try and and and catch up quicker I say this very much in the beginning because I I hope it signifies that we're not great big fans of tax harmonization in Europe Unless of course it harmonizes at the levels of our taxes. We'd be very happy to see that but there's hardly any chance of that happening but We believe that it is important as we address the crisis in Europe to understand that there still remain differences within the European continent in terms of opportunities in terms of Standards of living in terms of sources of economic growth, and we need to strengthen those parts of Europe That for historical and for other reasons Are on the catching up side and allow them to also be able to move forward In a manner that supports our growth targets in Europe, but it doesn't let Let go of of whole regions or of whole countries in Europe So this is sort of a second covenant and within our own domestic Agreement on how we tackle The crisis currently that we face on the continent, of course How that translates into debates in Brussels is very very important for us and here I believe that Bulgaria is One of those countries that definitely does not want to see a multi-speed Europe in which countries end up Divided in a permanent structures based on Agreements reached on economic policy coordination or other or other areas, however We're not a country that wants to Stay aside from the further integration We're quite happy with seeing Europe Come together and integrate Further and in this our positions have been very Very consistent and very Carefully balanced because our own economy being small and completely open to the rest of the union Is very much influenced by developments in countries like Germany and the direction that their economies take But also our economy is very much affected by the perception of the region in which we live And I say this as a particular concern because the fact that we now have The situation in Greece that we've had for some time Causes great concern for us Greece is our neighbor. It is Traditionally, I think the first of the second biggest investor in the country or at least one of the top three We have about 20 to 30 percent of a banking sector is owned by Greek banks We have been isolated from the Greek crisis until this point Indeed some will argue that we've seen a strangely twisted positive effect with Greek companies relocating north of the border As as the situation in Greece continues Well, that's a little bit You know, some people actually in Bulgarian media will be quite happy about that I'm not really sure that we should be very happy about that because we want to see our neighbors Come out of the crisis as quickly as possible And in a manner that is sustainable But very much along the lines of policies that we have undertaken over the years including strict fiscal discipline containing budget deficit and limiting limiting public debt Indeed now to I said about perception because even though Bulgaria is not affected on a daily basis by the crisis in Greece The perception that the whole region is affected by the Greek crisis is there and this obviously limits the Foreign direct investment in the country and it creates obstacles that weren't there before and This is one challenge which we're trying to address as a government to reach out beyond this with this perception And and look for new markets and new investments in our own economy Particularly within the Gulf the Middle East the broader Middle East and the rising powers of China Brazil and others and obviously having a Brazilian president whose father was born in Bulgaria Has a Bulgarian name helps To some extent at least in that part of the world So this is this is this is this is indeed a challenge the second challenge And I come back to Europe is that in our part of the world foreign policy still matters Often these days and I personally find it extremely annoying is that every time we try and have a foreign policy discussion Where somebody it ends up about the discussion about the crisis in Europe and we don't really talk about foreign policy But in the Balkans foreign policy really matters And particularly now as we head towards the December European Council where you know, hopefully decisions will be taken on Serbia on Montenegro And and you know the rest of the enlargement or the European perspective for the for the Balkans beyond Croatia's accession it matters because the We believe very strongly that you know, you know, no country can be an isolated island from its own environment And if there is uncertainty in our neighbors if there's uncertainty in the perspective or the future of our neighbors Or the policies that they have Be that in Greece be that in the Balkans be that anywhere else it creates constraints for our own economy and for our own growth And this is why I hope sincerely that we will as we head towards the December European Council Heads of state and government will be able to take decisions that go beyond Croatia's accession to the European Union In if it would be unfortunate if Croatia were welcomed in the European Union and no progress be seen with other countries in the region that would Not send the right signal to reform minded governments or public opinions in the region And of the Western Balkans and sending that signal is is is quite crucial. So for us from our own little perspective It is very important to Extend a hand to Montenegro and particularly in in December And and to look forward to extending a hand to to Serbia and not to forget Kosovo And not to forget the fact that there is one country in southeastern Europe still the only one that there's only one country with which The European Union has no contractual relationship. That's Kosovo and whose citizens Are the only citizens of a country in southeastern Europe that have no Perspective no debate no no no no discussion with Europe on the possibility of a a freer visa Regime with the rest of Europe. So I think it's quite important for the stability of all of our part of the world to focus on that now that may not be really a very Traditional way of approaching The challenge of how do we deal with the crisis in Europe? when you look at it from Perhaps in the north of Europe But from from our neck of the woods. This is very very important Because as I said the perception of the region the challenges of the region faces Definitely there and that there are two other areas perhaps which which are key one is How do we address the challenge of the strategic partnerships that Europe has and this is something the island in particular here Has a particularly important role to play That there's much debate in Brussels who are our strategic partners Around the world China and America and Russia and Brazil and South Africa and so on and so on And you can probably list a very long list of strategic partners If you sort of try and take a vanity case approach, you know have a little box of strategic partners and then we Show them around and we're very proud of the strategic partners that we have But it's very important to understand that It is essential for the for finding a solution to the Economic crisis in Europe and for strengthening Europe's role in the world that we begin distinguishing between strategic partners and strategic strategic partnering on with non-specific issues with countries and Bulgaria is very strongly that if we have one strategic partner in Europe. That is the United States of America with all the differences that we may have with all the Debates that we may have us to foreign policy issues or economic policy issues It is very important for us to retain that and strengthen that that partnership Recently there was a transatlantic a trends survey which came out in a few few months ago in September Which showed a dramatic change and in public opinion a 50% of European public opinion still thinks that America is the The key partner for Europe for the first time more or just over 50% of US public opinion thought that Asia was America's strategic Partner not Europe and I think this changes this change this certainly reflects Developments at a global level But it is in our European interest to strengthen that partnership much more and invest much more perhaps than Then we've done in the past And this has quite a significant implication for how we handle the global the global crisis Financial crisis, and this has quite substantial implication how we Respond to specific issues that are being debated in Europe Right now whether it is Tak tak taxing bank transactions or whether it is how we overall What what approach we take overall in terms of responding to the to the economic challenges So last point If I may from our own again Bulgarian perspective Great challenge for Europe and indeed a test a real test for all of us Beyond the the financial crisis right now is our response to the Arab Spring into developments in the Middle East and North Africa Again something that we watch very closely back home because of its proximity Indeed if you take a flight from Sofia to to Brussels It would be what about three hours two and a half hours to take a flight from Sofia to Damascus It would be less than two hours And if you take a flight to Tel Aviv it would be less than two hours So anything that happens in that part of the world immediately affects us and we have strong traditional links as well and we believe that very strongly that if it is it is really wrong to sort of To sit on a Sit on the fence and I'm sort of almost panicky mood and say well Who things are not going in the right direction? We have all these You know quote-unquote wrong people that will be taking power across the region It's very wrong to approach that situation in that way What we should be doing is going way out of our way in assisting secular movements and setting up institutions in the countries of North Africa and the Middle East that are interested in Managing a transition to a democratic state and there's there's much for Europe to do that both in terms of Opening up markets very difficult Particularly with some member states the debate on that is very difficult Allowing for more mobility Again, not difficult, but politically sensitive Particularly for students very important indeed, but also key is to finally be able to push forward with one project that the Polish presidency has been very keen on and that is the establishment of the European Endowment for Democracy An instrument that would really help us Reach out as a community based on values and help those that share our values and strengthen their Strengthen their chances of success in in these countries What we're doing back home domestically on this as well. We we we sat as as Egypt was changing the first time We Sat back and we sort of looked and identified certain parallels between things what happened things that happened in our own country in the early days of 89 90 and developments in Egypt Was it really a revolution? You know questions similar questions were asked back home Indeed there was back home. There was a second episode of I may call it as we saw yesterday and the day before that in Egypt The process for further change It's a sort of nightly raids in which archives seem to burn and disappear quickly Both in Egypt and Bulgaria We're quite a standard history in our case in 89 and 90 you wake up one morning And oh my god, there's been a fire in the police station and no no no fuzz have Being able to survive from the old regime So we figured out that these different similarities and of course many many differences And in May of this year we call the conference in which we invited activists and government officials and NGOs and from Morocco to Yemen to meet with activists that were crucial in the Changes in Central and Eastern Europe not to tell them how they should be Doing their job our friends in the Arab world But to share our experience tell them what we did wrong what we did right where we think we succeeded and where we apparently failed And it's been quite useful. It's been extremely successful and it's spurred off a process of its own And the early days of December. We have sort of the second event Which was planned as a small workshop of now it's gone into over a hundred and fifty people coming I think There's no longer a small workshop and how we'll manage it But it's on transitional justice in the Middle East and dealing with the with a legacy of the regime in the past Early next year. We're also be doing the first half next year. We'll be doing something on security sector reform so our own domestic attempt in helping that is To create an environment in which we can at least have a tool through which we share our experience with our friends in the Arab world Hopefully help them avoid The mistakes that we we did With the belief that that if we are able to extend Community of values if we're able to share Freedom with the regions beyond us that will help our own country And the environment in which our economy can can succeed And and can move forward Obviously there are specific concerns Related to countries like Syria, for example, which we have a which is which is quite close to us and we watch very carefully But this is this is sort of the more the the overall approach which we take to two debates In Europe and in this I think again with Ireland We've seen quite a lot of similarity of our views Obviously starting from a different historic perspective and experience but ending up in the same position wanting a stronger Europe one that is that underlines the fundamental principles of solidarity and community that Europe is based and And rules and that seems to be that seems to be the word of the day and getting everyone to really provide by the rules that It's been set in place for all of us, but I don't know if I've taken up too much time. I think but thank you very much