Azerbaijan is awaited in the Balkans, Prime Minister

Caspian Energy (CE): Your Excellency, which implications for the EU’s economy do you expect after Great Britain leaves the EU? How will it affect the investment climate of the economic space of the EU and Balkan states in particular?

Boyko Borissov, Prime Minister of the Republic of Bulgaria: The United Kingdom will remain an important trading partner for us after Brexit. According to the official data by the European Commission, the UK accounts for 15.5% of the exports and 10.3% of the imports of the EU-27[1]. On the other hand the EU will be by far the most important trading partner of the UK with 47.1% of the exports and 52.8% of the imports.

For this reason we are interested in concluding a Free Trade Agreement, which would not introduce trade tariffs or quotas between the EU and the UK. We should bear in mind, however, that no matter how ambitious the future economic partnership between the EU and the UK is, it cannot mirror the benefits of the Single Market.

Bulgaria is and will continue to be actively engaged in the Western Balkans and Brexit will not change that. The Sofia Declaration and Sofia Priority Agenda adopted during our Presidency of the Council of the EU in the first half of 2018 set forth the framework for continuous economic and investment cooperation with the six countries in the region. We remain committed to their implementation. 

We hope to continue our cooperation with the UK in the region, including in the framework of the Berlin Process which Bulgaria co-chairs this year together with the Republic of North Macedonia.