February 4 (BTA special correspondent Konstantin Kostov)
 - Bulgarian News Agency Director Kiril Valchev Friday
inaugurated the BTA National Press Club in the Republic of North
 Macedonia's capital of Skopje.
    
The event was attended by Foreign Minister Teodora Genchovska,
North Macedonia's Minister of Culture Bisera Kostadinovska
Stojchevska, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Culture and Media
 Committee, Toshko Yordanov, the EP Special Rapporteur for North
 Macedonia, Ilhan Kyuchyuk, the Bulgarian Ambassador to the
Republic of North Macedonia, Angel Angelov, as well as other
officials.

"We, the media are responsible for which of today's news will
remain for tomorrow as a memory from yesterday. We cannot buy a
new past, even with all of today's available money or material
things. That is why we bear the huge responsibility of
publishing today's news fairly, while thinking about the meaning
 they would have tomorrow," BTA Director General Kiril Valchev
said in his opening speech.

"We count very much on BTA's branch in the Republic of North
Macedonia, beacuse the connectivity between the two countries is
 already a fact, and that is the media connectivity," Minister
Genchovska said. She added that the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry
relies much on the media from both countries to correctly
broadcast the news, to interact, so that the public in both
countries have access to real news.

Minister Bisera Kostadinovska Stojchevska said that this is the
place from which the news that counter fake news must start.

"This is a good day for Bulgarian-Macedonian relations, because
the good examples are brought to the fore, while I believe that
they are the key to resolving bilateral issues. We have no
interest in building additional walls between our countries, but
 quite the opposite. The agreement between MIA and BTA is a
partnership based on european standards, which will provide an
opportunity for solid and reliable information to be exchanged,
which will help people learn more about each other," Ilhan
Kyuchyuk said.     

The Press Club in Skopje is the third one BTA opens outside
Bulgaria. The first one was inaugurated on December 11, 2015 in
Bosilegrad (Serbia), and the second - on October 5, 2017, in
Taraklia (Moldova).
    
This year BTA plans to appoint a correspondent in Bucharest
(Romania), and in the next two years see its representatives
based in Athens (Greece), Ankara (Turkey), Belgrade (Serbia) and
 Tirana (Albania). RY/BR, MY

 
 
/МЙ/