Public Relations and Protocol

The situation in Israel is extremely complicated and it is very difficult to get permission from the Israeli authorities to fly. This was said by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov, who led the organization of the flight to evacuate the Bulgarian citizens from the State of Israel, upon their arrival at Sofia Airport.

Bulgaria and Iran attach great importance to the implementation of transit transport corridors, which will help develop connectivity between the two countries and accelerate the transport of goods. This was confirmed at a meeting today by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov and the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Islamic Republic of Iran, H. E. Ali Reza Irvash. They stressed the importance of transport for cooperation between the countries.

Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Anna Natova opened the Economic Committee of the European Association of Airports - ACI EUROPE. Bulgaria hosts the 46th meeting of the Committee, which is held for the first time in Bulgaria. The organizer of the event is Sofia Airport operator SOF Connect.

The budget of OP "Transport and Transport Infrastructure" is BGN 4 billion and a little over BGN 1 billion of it should be absorbed in the remaining three months until the end of the year. This is what the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov said at an event on the operational programme, which took place in Sofia. The Minister stressed that this is a huge resource, but with a good mobilization of the Ministry and the beneficiaries the program will be successfully completed.

The development of maritime transport has a key role to play in improving Bulgaria's connectivity with Asia. This was stated by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Dimitar Nedyalkov during the 6th International Transport and Logistics Business Forum "New Silk Way" in Astana, Kazakhstan. He pointed out that efforts are being made to improve and modernize the transport links of the Bulgarian sea ports with the interior of the country.

Ensuring fast and efficient connectivity between Asia and Europe through Bulgarian ports is among the government's priorities. This was said by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during a meeting with the Ambassador of the Republic of Kazakhstan H. E. Viktor Temirbayev. They discussed the opportunities for attracting transit cargo traffic between Asia and Europe and developing the potential of the Black Sea region, which is key to the Trans-Caspian transport route (Middle Corridor).

NC "Railway Infrastructure" has implemented a modern information system that will support the planning and management of train traffic in the country. The Train Operation Management System (TOMS) was developed under a European project and represents one of the most advanced software solutions in this field.

Over BGN 250 million from OP "Transport and Transport Infrastructure", which are for railway projects, have already been redirected to other modes of transport. We took this decision to avoid losing funds under the programme, which ends at the end of the year. This was stated by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during an inspection of the construction of the railway line Elin Pelin - Kostenets.

No serious violations have been found during school bus inspections. This is the conclusion from the results of a specialised inspection of more than 1,200 school buses that took place from 1 to 21 September 2023.

Almost twenty years after the announcement of the project, Bulgaria and Romania have started real actions for the construction of a third bridge over the Danube. The two countries submitted a joint project to the European Commission for a feasibility study on a second Ruse-Giurgiu bridge. With this, the two countries are actually starting the process of building a second combined road and rail bridge over the Danube at Ruse.

The accelerated restoration of the air line between Sofia and Baku was among the main topics of discussion between the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov and the Ambassador of Azerbaijan to our country H.E. Hussein Husseinov.

The two capitals have the potential to become aviation transit hubs for connecting flights between Europe and Asia, it was noted during the meeting. "This could ensure the necessary 70% filling of the flight capacity to achieve cost-effectiveness," Minister Gvozdeykov stressed.

In just a few years, the new designers and builders of the country's modern infrastructure will emerge from here. This was said by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during the opening of the academic year at the University of Architecture, Civil Engineering and Geodesy.

"Every day we talk about new projects, investments and reforms in all sectors of our economy. We should not forget that the basis of this process is the knowledge and Bulgarian scientists, who are highly appreciated not only in Bulgaria, but also abroad," Minister Gvozdeykov stressed.

The first six pilots for the HEMS airborne emergency medical services system go today for training in Italy. Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov met them before their departure. He stressed that the building of the individual components for the system is on schedule and in January 2024 the pilots will board the first helicopter, which will already be in Bulgaria.

Together with the trade unions, we will work for real reforms in the sector that are not just on paper. This was stated by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov at today's founding congress of a new federation of transport trade unions at the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria (KNSB).

At the very beginning of its mandate, the cabinet set itself a clear task and main priority - the introduction of green transport in Bulgaria. I believe that the staff who graduate from the Higher School of Transport contribute precisely to the integration of the most environmentally friendly transport in the country. This was stated by Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Bisser Minchev during the opening of the new academic year in the Higher School of Transport Todor Kableshkov.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Maria Gabriel, Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov and US Ambassador to Bulgaria Kenneth Merten validated a postal and philatelic edition dedicated to the 120th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.
"One stamp can carry a stronger message than 120 words," Minister Gvozdeykov said before the stamp was placed on the edition. This is the third stamp in the philatelic encyclopaedia of diplomatic relations between the countries.

The technical and financial aspects for the construction of the second bridge over the river Danube between Ruse and Giurgiu will be clarified soon with the aim of the two countries to apply under the Connecting Europe Facility with a joint feasibility study project. This was discussed by the Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications Dimitar Nedyalkov and the State Secretary of Transport and Infrastructure of Romania Bogdan Mindrescu during a meeting in Bucharest.

The Italian companies operating in Bulgaria support the construction of a second bridge over the river Danube at Ruse, which will significantly ease the increased traffic in the region. This was discussed today by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov and the Ambassador of Italy to Bulgaria H. E. Giuseppina Dzara during a meeting at the Ministry. The future facility could also help solve the problems of transporting goods along the North-South route.

The Civil Aviation Administration has launched an investigation into the case in which Ryanair took a mother off a plane and separated her from her 3-year-old child and her husband.

Due to overbooking of the particular flight, it was decided to put the father and the child on board, and the mother was redirected to fly the next day. Under European law, the passenger is entitled to monetary compensation, which is determined according to the distance of the flight and, in this case, amounts to EUR 400.

The transfer of ownership of the Rosenets terminal to the state is already underway and will be completed before the 30-day deadline. This was stated by the Minister of Transport and Communications Georgi Gvozdeykov during a visit to the port terminal today.

Bulgarian Ports Infrastructure Company already has a port operator license. We are negotiating with Lukoil to reach an agreement for joint operation of the tax warehouse, which is a requirement for obtaining a Certificate of Operability for the terminal,’ he said.