Bulgaria's Minister of Transport: We are ready for the Rousse-Giurgiu ferry line

The Minister of Transport and Communications, Georgi Gvozdeykov and the Minister of Interior Kalin Stoyanov held an urgent meeting with the Bulgarian Ambassador in Bucharest H.E. Radko Vlaikov to discuss the situation with the passage through the border crossings Vidin-Calafat and Rousse-Giurgiu and to identify measures to solve the problem.

The talks were held on the occasion of a number of reports from the heavy goods industry about kilometre-long queues at border crossing from Bulgaria to Romania.

"Close cooperation between the relevant institutions is necessary and together with the Ministry of Interior and local authorities we will create an organisation to solve this systemic problem," Minister Gvozdeykov stressed, the Ministry of Transport and Communications said.

Georgi Gvozdeykov also pointed out that the Bulgarian state is fully prepared for the launch of the Rousse-Giurgiu ferry line, but the Romanian side still has work to do.

"If we launch the ferry as soon as possible, it will reduce the traffic by 25%, which will significantly improve the situation on the Danube Bridge," the Transport Minister explained.

Minister Kalin Stoyanov commented that he monitors the situation at all border crossings on a daily basis and is in constant contact with the management of the Ministry of Interior in the country. "I have given instructions for work at full capacity," he added.

Ambassador Radko Vlaikov hailed the two ministers for the good coordination between them, for the faster resolution of issues of common interest. During the meeting, the sides also discussed current aspects of relations with Romania, in particular the interaction on the admission of Bulgaria and Romania to Schengen, the connectivity between the two countries and the navigation on the river Danube.

The meeting was also attended by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Dimitar Nedyalkov and the Interim Director of the Border Police Directorate, General Anton Zlatanov.