After a meeting with Italian counterpart Mario Draghi, Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov pointed out that Gazprom set different conditions for different EU countries and therefore the EU must join forces in negotiating common terms for member states.

PM Kiril Petkov said the reason for the different conditions was the different scale of markets. For example, Russia offered better conditions to larger markets such as Italy and Germany, while offers for smaller markets were much different. Draghi expressed support for Bulgaria's call for a common European position in negotiations with Gazprom.

 Bulgaria's proposal is expected to be discussed at the next meeting of European leaders in June. Prime Minister Petkov also said that sending more than 800 Italian servicemen to Bulgaria as part of the joint NATO battalion in the country was a firm sign of support from Italy.