January 20 (BTA) - "Bulgaria welcomes the aims of the French EU Presidency to build a stronger, more sovereign Europe, free to make its own decisions and be an international factor," Bulgarian Foreign Minister Teodora Genchovska said here on Thursday during a conference on the French Presidency of the Council of the EU. "The Presidency priorities are comprehensive and well-balanced," she added.

France is holding the rotating EU Council Presidency from January 1 until June 30, 2022. The conference was organized by PanEuropa Bulgaria and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, in partnership with the French Embassy in Sofia, the Bulgarian Diplomatic Institute and the European Commission Representation in Bulgaria.

Genchovska was confident that France will implement the agenda and achieve the ambitious goals it has set for its Presidency. "Bulgaria shares the French vision that green policies and focus on the digital transition are key to a recovery of the European economy and building a strategic autonomy of the EU."

"A digital and independent Europe means a strong Europe resilient to external influences, with a rapidly growing economy," she added. Bulgaria firmly believes that a just socio-economic transition must be guaranteed to all, while no Member State is left to tackle the hardships of that transition on its own. These hardships are compounded by the ongoing crisis, Genchovska added.

The climate action policies should be backed by an adequate and enabling framework which takes into consideration the principles of national specificities, neutrality and the right of each Member State to determine their energy mix on their own, according to Genchovska.

"Bulgaria strongly supports France's commitment to Europe's economic and social recovery," the Foreign Minister said.

She highlighted the significance of the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum for Bulgaria, noting that the reform of the EU asylum policy should be completed. This should result in establishing a stable system for managing migration flows and aiding Member States most affected by migration pressure.

Strengthening the Schengen Area needs to be discussed during the French Presidency, Genchovska said. Bulgaria has proven that it can successfully fulfil its obligations of guarding one of the EU's external borders. "The time has come to put Bulgarian Schengen accession back on the agenda," the Minister said.

Bulgaria supports the French plan to prioritize the European perspective of the Western Balkans, Genchovska went on to say. Bulgaria backs the stated objectives of the candidate countries implementing comprehensive reforms. Such reforms are a sine qua non condition for advancement of the pre-accession process. The chief Bulgarian diplomat believes that this process must be based on the candidates' own merits, their meeting the relevant criteria, including good neighbourly relations. She cited the Republic of North Macedonia as a case in point.

Speaking about the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis, Genchovska said that she herself had to cope with that challenge over the last two weeks. "The most important thing I realized during my stay at the hospital was that we be responsible to ourselves, our loved ones and the medical staff, who do their best to treat us."

Genchovska believes that now is the time to start strengthening the Bulgarian healthcare system. "While no one can predict the specificity of a future crisis, we should be able to create a framework that would make our response more effective and our institutions more resilient. That is why Bulgaria supports the French Presidency focusing on strengthening the EU and the Union's preparedness to tackle epidemics and other cross-border threats to health."

She added that a successful strategy should be based on balancing between EU- and national-level decision making, taking account of the potential of each separate country. "The virus knows no boundaries, which is why returning to normalcy would be impossible unless we offer further support for the other countries."

Bulgaria is committed to sharing COVID-19 vaccines with other countries, prioritizing the Western Balkans and Eastern Partnership. Donations have already been sent to the Republic of North Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. As part of Member States' joint efforts, vaccines from Bulgaria have also reached Bhutan and Bangladesh.

In a livestreamed statement at the PanEuropa Bulgaria event, the French Ambassador in Sofia Florence Robine presented the French Presidency priorities: recovery, strength, and a sense of belonging.

"Recovery: through a new European growth model, an economic and social model of its own. Strength: for a more sovereign Europe, with control over its borders in terms of defence and security. Sense of belonging: let us build a humane Europe standing up for its values of humanism and zero tolerance of hate speech," Robine said.

"This year is the European Year of Youth. On this occasion, we will enable people under 25 to enter civil service for six months." The French diplomat placed a special emphasis on the EU's will to give a fresh impetus to youth mobility by the student exchange Erasmus Programme and popularize European universities.