Rumen Radev meets with UNHCR Bulgaria Representative

The big challenge for the international community is to focus on resolving the armed conflicts leading to massive human rights abuse and generating waves of refugees. This is what Head of State Rumen Radev said at a meeting Seda Kuzucu, UNHCR Bulgaria Representative.

As a country that also forms the EU's external borders, Bulgaria is responsible for guaranteeing Europe's security. Together with this, our country will continue to strengthen its capacity to deal with refugees and speed up procedures for determining their status, the President said. Rumen Radev underlined that our country highly appreciates the support of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in enhancing the efficiency of the work of state and local institutions. Ms Kuzucu highlighted the good cooperation in the work of UNHCR with the Presidential Administration, as well as with other institutions in the country in this field. The meeting also highlighted the need to increase the number of interpreters to facilitate communication with refugees seeking asylum from military conflicts and to speed up administrative procedures.

The support provided by Bulgaria to people seeking refuge from the military conflict in Ukraine was also among the topics discussed during the meeting. The Head of State highlighted the humanitarian aid provided by our country to the refugees from the military operations in Ukraine, as well as the opportunities provided for their full integration, which are prerequisites for full access to education and the labour market. The data show that at present nearly 70 thousand Ukrainian refugees are registered in Bulgaria, and a significant number of them have expressed their wish to stay in our country.

The President also pointed out that it is important to distinguish between the issue of illegal migration to the EU and people seeking refuge from military conflicts, which is increasingly becoming a topic of heated debate in the EU.

The UNHCR is the main UN implementing agency for refugees and operates in 135 countries. Its work is dedicated to protecting people forced to flee military conflicts and other crises by providing life-saving assistance, including shelter, food, water and medical care. UNHCR's mandate in Bulgaria began in 1993, and its role in the country is to assist and advise institutions in the process of granting international protection to those eligible.