Bulgarian President Denies 'Bilateral Meeting' with Turkish Vice-PM

The office of Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev has come out with an official statement denying that Plevneliev discussed any part of bilateral relations with Turkish Deputy PM Bekir Bozdag during the latter's visit to Bulgaria.

"President Plevneliev has held no bilateral meeting with a representative of the Republic of Turkey, and therefore he has not discussed any topics in bilateral relations, inclduding property issues," reads the message.

Last Thursday Plevneliev met Bozdag in Plovdiv at an iftar dinner on the occasion of the great Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr (Ramazan Bayrami).

Eid was the occasion of the Turkish Deputy-PM's trip to Bulgaria, as Bozdag is in charge of policies regarding Turks abroad.

The Anatolian Agency has reported that Bozdag has expressed grief at the alleged poor maintenance of Ottoman heritage sites in Bulgaria, saying Turkey plans to "reclaim" them and take care of their restoration.

This, together with a ban on Bulgarian journalists' presence at the dinner last week, has provoked controversy in Bulgaria.

"The presence of the Head of State at the event was a purely human sign of respect for the religious holiday and the traditions of Bulgarian citizens with a Muslim confession," stated the President's Office.

Monday nationalist Ataka party leader Volen Siderov criticized Plevneliev's actions, saying that Ataka will consider starting an impeachment procedure for "treason."

During his visit to Bulgaria, Turkish Vice-PM Bozdag also met Bulgarian Vice-PM and Minister of Justice Zinaida Zlatanova, an occasion regarding which the government has released no official position yet.

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