“Security and defence were in the focus of attention during the meeting between Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mariya Gabriel, and the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky. We expressed our solidarity with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people,” wrote Mariya Gabriel on Facebook after the meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky at the Council of Ministers. The President of Ukraine is paying a one-day visit to Bulgaria at the invitation of Bulgaria’s Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov.

• President Volodymyr Zelensky is in Bulgaria
  
• PM Nikolay Denkov confirms Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to Bulgaria
  

This is Volodymyr Zelensky’s first visit to Southeastern Europe since the beginning of Russia’s war against Ukraine. There has so far been one official visit by Bulgaria to Ukraine – the visit by the then prime minister Kiril Petkov in April last year.

At the Council of Ministers, Bulgaria‘s Premier Nikolai Denkov and Ukraine‘s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed a joint declaration on Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration.

Bulgaria’s Minister of Energy Rumen Radev and Ukraine’s Energy Minister German Galushchenko signed a memorandum on cooperation in the energy field.

"I want to thank Bulgaria for its support and for protecting our people. It is very important that amid this moral crisis in Europe, Bulgaria is an opponent of the policy of genocide that Russia is pursuing against our country, our independence, freedom and people", Ukraine‘s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said at a briefing with Bulgaria’s Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov held at the Council of Ministers.

Prime Minister Denkov pointed out that Bulgaria would continue to support Ukraine on the way to NATO and the EU. He also said that Bulgaria was ready to participate in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine with expertise and material assistance. "An independent and sovereign Ukraine is key to security in the region and Europe," Denkov said. He also recalled that the largest Bulgarian ethnic community abroad is located in Ukraine.

Volodymyr Zelensky was also welcomed by his Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev, who expressed solidarity with the people of Ukraine and the victims of the war. The Bulgarian president recalled that in the first months of the invasion, Bulgaria lent a helping hand to thousands of citizens of Ukraine, and many of them continue to be under the protection of the Bulgarian state. According to President Radev, the conflict in Ukraine has no military solution, and therefore it was necessary to make consistent efforts to de-escalate and seek a peaceful solution through diplomacy. He stated that he did not support providing Bulgarian armament to Ukraine, as this could involve Bulgaria in the war and also weaken the capabilities of Bulgaria's armed forces.

"The people of Bulgaria understand that this is not a conflict, but a war. It is your right to express this position, but Ukrainians must defend themselves so that the war does not reach Bulgaria, Poland or someone else," Zelensky said.

On Friday, July 7, Zelensky will travel to Istanbul, where he will discuss with Turkish President Recep Erdogan the Black Sea grain deal and the development of the war in Ukraine, the Turkish Anadolu Agency has reported.