Moscow and Sofia will intensify their bilateral economic cooperation. This decision was made following the results of the business mission of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry to Sofia (Bulgaria).
During the visit of the Trade Representation of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Bulgaria, the Advisor to the President of the Moscow’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Vladislav Kiselev, and the Trade Representative, Mr. Konstantin Artyushin, discussed prospects for further cooperation, specifically, the participation of members of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry in a number of events to be held this year, as well as opportunities for joint work on organizing business missions of Moscow businessmen to Bulgaria.
At a meeting at the Bulgarian Ministry of Tourism, the Deputy Minister, Mr. Lyuben Kanchev, noted that in the past two years there has been a decline in the number of tourists coming from Russia, and called for joint measures to change the situation. “This is especially important this year, when we celebrate the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between our countries. Cooperation with Russia is of paramount importance for us, ” he said.
According to the Deputy Minister, in recent years, a lot has been done to simplify the issuance of visas to Bulgaria for the Russian citizens. Today, one may apply for a visa in 59 cities of the Russian Federation. But more work is needed to be done developing new tourism applications, particularly business, educational, pilgrimage and therapeutic purposes. Mr. Lyuben Kanchev assured the MCCI delegation to support business missions, organized by the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
The key event of the business mission was the participation of the Moscow delegation in the round table "Tourism-2019", held in the framework of the 36th International Tourist Exchange "Leisure and Spa Expo-2019". A member of the delegation of the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the President of the National Tourist Union, Mr. Roman Skory, spoke about new promising areas and the mutual interest of the Russian and Bulgarian sides in areas, such as educational and therapeutic tourism. He also stated that the development of tourism is the most important element of "people's diplomacy”. “Tourism is not based only on getting impressions. It involves making new friends, business partners, ideas, and much more,” he said. There is a willingness to support joint initiatives of Moscow’s and Bulgarian businessmen, said the Head of the House of Moscow in Sofia, Mr. Boris Gromov during the round table. In turn, Mr. Kiselev, made a presentation of the “Business Market” platform, created by the MCCI, which helps to find business partners all over the world. The main difference of this platform is that it is created on the basis of the auspices of the Chambers of Commerce and Industry. “Of course, all of the existing forms of work are important. However, success can be achieved only by combining them with the new, state of the art existing technologies, which enable us to work efficiently in today's global world, ” said Mr. Kiselev.
The prospects for cooperation within the framework of the “Business Market” project were also discussed during a meeting with Mr. Georgi Minchev, the Chairman of the Board of the Bulgarian-Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and Mr. Ognyan Pachev, the Secretary General of the Chamber. The parties agreed that BRTPP will act as the operator of the “Business Market” digital platform in Bulgaria. An agreement will be signed soon. The participants also discussed the prospects for further cooperation between the two Chambers.
The event was held with the support of the Government of Moscow and the Department of Economic Policy and Development of the City of Moscow