At an informal meeting in Sofia with secretaries of state and secretaries general of the EU member states Bulgarian Foreign Minister Ekaterina Zaharieva has presented the priorities of the upcoming Bulgarian presidency of the Council of the EU.

Minister Zaharieva has quoted the motto of this country and that of the forthcoming presidency "Unity makes the power" and pointed out that the Western Balkans are of paramount importance for Europe's security and prosperity. It is vitally important to revive the European perspective of the countries in the region, she added.

Bulgaria’s first diplomat pointed out that this will be one of the main messages of Bulgaria also at the summit in Sofia in May next year, dedicated to the Western Balkans. Ekaterina Zaharieva presented the need of developing young people’s and EU citizens’ digital skills and raised the topic of Europe's future, economic growth and cohesion policy, as well as the security and stability of the EU at the backdrop of geopolitical processes and migratory pressures.