Iraqi Ambassador to Sofia Meets Vice President of Republic of Bulgaria
The Ambassador of the Republic of Iraq to Sofia, Ms. Lina Jalal Omar, met with the Vice President of the Republic, Mrs. Iliana Iotova , at the headquarters of the Presidency of the Republic.
During the meeting, bilateral relations between the Republic of Iraq and the Republic of Bulgaria were discussed. the Ambassador explained the great importance that the government and people of Iraq attach to Bulgaria, and that Iraq appreciates the position of the Republic of Bulgaria in rejecting the inclusion of Iraq in the European Union list of high-risk countries in the field of combating money laundering and terrorist financing. Moreover, she indicated that Iraq is looking forward to the continuation of Bulgarian support to Iraq.
The Ambassador affirmed her hope for high-level bilateral visits between the two countries, and Iraq’s keenness to reactivate and revitalize the conduct of political consultations between the two countries and the signing of agreements, as well as discussing the possibilities of cooperation between the two countries to conclude a number of memoranda of understanding in various fields, and working on holding meetings of the Iraqi-Bulgarian joint committee, which has been suspended for years, the last of which was in 2013 in Sofia, and the Iraqi sidés keenness for the participation of Bulgarian companies in the reconstruction of the liberated areas in Iraq after its war against ISIS terrorist groups, and Iraq’s interest in investing in Bulgaria, referring to the interest of Iraqi businesswomen in communicating with Bulgarian businesswomen.
The Ambassador discussed studying the possibility of opening a direct flight between Baghdad and Sofia to enhance joint cooperation between the two countries, especially there is great interest from Iraqi students wishing to study in Bulgaria, namely, in the field of medicine, and to use Bulgarian medical skills in Iraq.
For her part, Vice-President Mrs. Yotova, stressed that there is a need for more media promotion regarding commercial cooperation with Iraq, which has declined significantly over the past years.