Bulgaria, Portugal Presidents Call for Political Solutions to Middle East, North Africa Conflicts

Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev (R) and Portuguese President Anibal Cavaco Silva (R), Lisbon, Portugal, Nov. 2, 2015. Photo by BGNES

The European Union should generate sustainable solutions for resolving the crises in Syria, Iraq and the entire Middle East, Bulgaria’s President Rosen Plevneliev said in Lisbon on Monday following a meeting with his Portuguese counterpart Anibal Cavaco Silva.

Increased migratory pressures at the EU’s external borders have been in the focus of the meeting of the two heads of state, according to a news release issued by Plevneliev’s office.

“We are sharing the view that the migration situation will continue to worsen until political solutions are found to the conflicts in the Middle East and North Africa," Plevneliev said.

Both Bulgaria and Portugal believe that a common European approach is needed to cope with the migration challenge, he added.

“Europe cannot find calm until the war in Syria continues, until we witness a record number of conflicts and failed states,” the Bulgarian President said.

President Cavaco Silva said that the EU needs to talk both with the migrants’ countries of origin and their host countries to successfully tackle the migration crisis.

Plevneliev is paying a two-day official visit to Portugal at the invitation of Anibal Cavaco Silva.

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