Bulgaria to give Ukraine humanitarian aid worth over EUR 700,000 - Shmyhal

According to the government portal, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and his Bulgarian counterpart Kiril Petkov discussed the support for Ukrainian refugees, Ukraine's European perspective and energy security at a meeting in Kyiv on Thursday, Ukrinform reports.

"Ukraine is grateful to Bulgaria for participating in measures to support our country together with the international community. We highly appreciate the decisions of the Government of Bulgaria to send humanitarian aid to the tune of EUR 706,000, as well as to provide assistance to Ukrainian refugees to the tune of EUR 181,000," Shmyhal said.

According to him, Ukraine especially values the transfer of protective ammunition for Ukrainian soldiers, who are defending not only Ukraine's but also Europe's borders. Both parties also considered the possibility of Bulgaria providing military equipment repair services.

Among other things, both prime ministers discussed the integration of Ukraine with the European Union. Shmyhal said that Ukraine had promptly filled out the questionnaire and was waiting for the conclusion of the European Commission and the decision of the EU Council to grant Ukraine the status of an EU membership candidate.

"Weapons are the essential thing Ukraine needs to deter the enemy. Sanctions - to weaken Russia and discourage it from being aggressive. Finance - to maintain Ukraine's macroeconomic stability. And the fourth critical issue for us is Ukraine's membership in the European family," Shmyhal said.

Both parties discussed energy security in Europe. Shmyhal noted that after joining the Ukrainian power system with ENTSO-E, Ukraine is capable of exporting up to 2,000 MW of electricity to the EU countries, including Bulgaria.

Shmyhal expressed gratitude for Bulgaria's support for the European Union's sanctions policy against Russia as well as for Petkov's personal initiative to levy separate sanctions against the aggressor, which are extremely effective today in helping Ukraine fight the enemy.

For his part, Petkov said that Bulgaria would continue to fully support Ukraine. He noted that his country is ready to promote the export of electricity from Ukraine and can also offer the port of Varna as a logistics hub, in particular for flour. According to him, Bulgaria will be happy to help and join the reconstruction of Ukraine. Petkov also responded positively to Ukraine's request to repair and restore military equipment.