The US companies in Bulgaria complain that our specialists flee abroad. The entry visas for the US will not be abolished for now. Washington can help the nurses a lot," says Ambassador Poptodorova

When will the Bulgarians travel to the USA visa-free? The Standart put the question that concerns thousands of Bulgarians to our Ambassador to the US, HE Elena Poptodorova. We also asked what would be the benefits to Bulgaria from the current visit of the US President to Bulgaria in terms of trade and economic relations between the two countries? " The visit of the US President to Bulgaria gives a clear signal to the US business circles: Bulgaria is a safe and attractive place for investment," comments Mrs. Poptodorova

Mrs. Poptodorova, Bulgaria has been included in the European tour of US President George W. Bush. Does it carry any political message?
 - President Bush's visit to Bulgaria does not come unexpectedly or accidentally; rather, it is the result of a long bilateral cooperation. This is, in a way, the culmination of this active cooperation on all state levels.
 October 2005, President Georgi Parvanov was received in the White House, his visit being preceded by other visits of top Bulgarian statesmen to the USA.
 In this line of thoughts, Mr. Bush's visit is reciprocal, that is, it fits in the already established rhythm of diplomatic exchange between the USA and Bulgaria.

  - Romania, though, is no less reliable ally to the USA in the war on terrorism, but Bush is not scheduled to visit our northern neighbour.
  - His visit to Bulgaria is connected with the signing of an agreement for cooperation in the field of defense and, it is true, it is to be signed by Romania, as well. But his European tour is limited in time, after all, and he is unable to pay a visit to all allies.
 As Bulgaria is included in Bush's tour across Europe, matters of utmost importance in the field of security and defense will be discussed in Sofia at the highest state level. Bulgaria has shown consistency and wisdom in conducting its regional policy.

  - Defence and political cooperation between Bulgaria and the USA has improved considerably over the last years. What about the economic cooperation?
 - I think that this visit will bring news in this sphere - commercial and economic cooperation. A visit of the US President has always been a sign for the business that the host country is a friend of the USA, that it is safe and has favourable climate for business, an clear sign to the US business circles.

  - The military bases actually exist in Bulgaria. The Czechs are rather worried that elements of the US anti-missile shield would turn their country into a target for terrorists. Will President Bush be able persuade the Bulgarians this will not happen in Bulgaria?
 - First, the Bulgarians should know that our country would not accept nuclear weapon of any kind or any kind of antinuclear defence systems. The facilities deployed in Bulgaria are for training and are rather of logistic than offensive type. They do not even have defence characteristics but are actually centres for joint training of soldiers from both countries. In this respect, this is a great advantage for the modernization of the Bulgarian army.

  - Last month you and the US Ambassador to Bulgaria John Beyrle toured the USA with the intent to attract investors to Bulgaria. Does the American business community now know Bulgaria better and can we expect fresh investors?
 - This tour was the first of a kind after Bulgaria became a EU member. It would be too ambitious to say that the tour has definitely drew attention to Bulgaria of the US biggest companies. They, though, showed interest of absolutely pragmatic character. A looming problem was outlined. The companies which have been for some time in Bulgaria like American Standard, CISCO and Westinghouse expressed their concern that the specialists in Bulgaria are in increasingly shorter supply. The best of Bulgarian experts are lured abroad. Another problem they mentioned was the lack of high-tech industrial parks.

  - It is expected that during Bush's visit the lifting of the visa regime for Bulgarians will be among the discussed issues. In your opinion, when will this happen?
 - The question "when" is quite an early one. An exact date can't be fixed yet and, no doubt, President Bush will confirm this. Currently, a complex procedure is underway in the US administration. The thing I'm sure we will hear from President Bush is a successive, firm commitment of the American administration to include Bulgaria in a visa-free program. Now, the Congress is discussing the criteria for the abolishment of the visas, i.e. whether there should be a fixed threshold for denying visas; now it is 3%.
 To put it short, the Congress is doing its job, and we are doing ours in the embassy constantly proving the seriousness with which the institutions in Bulgaria are trying to meet the requirements. Another question we pose is how the criteria for denying visas are set - these criteria are quite obscure. I mean to disperse the illusions that President Bush will announce the exact date for lifting of visas. The important point is that Bulgaria has proven it is not an exporter of terrorism.

  - President Bush has included in his program the issue of the Bulgarian nurses sentenced to death in Libya. What could we expect from the talks in Sofia along these lines?
 - The important news should come from Libya. The USA, the EU and Bulgaria are making consistent everyday efforts. A date has been mentioned - June 21 - but I think that despite the fact that it was announced with good intentions, it was too early, not to say that it was a little bit naive...
 I got acquainted with the details of the case in 2001. And I remember many moments in which things looked as if on the threshold of a solution and all of a sudden the circumstances proved us wrong.

  - But this date was announced by Libya itself, represented by the Gaddafi Foundation, and was associated with the end of the German EU presidency.
 - That's right, but it's possible that it illustrates the expectations of the EU presidency itself. The Association of the Families of the HIV-infected Libyan children is only one of the components.

  - What developments in the Libyan problem could we expect during Bush's visit?
 - I think, that President Bush will confirm his stand that the whole administration, and not only it, are making efforts to create conditions for the solution of the case.
 And if there are any levers left, the USA are one of them.
 
  Vladislav Punchev

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