25.4.2007

US President Bush Visits Bulgaria in July

US president George W Bush is to pay official visit to Bulgaria on a two-day trip in July, Bulgaria's official state news agency BTA reported Tuesday.

Bush is expected to meet President Georgi Parvanov and Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev during his first ever visit to Bulgaria. President Bush will be accompanied by his wife Lora Bush.

The meeting between the two presidents will be their second one after Bulgarian president paid a visit to Washington in October 2005.

Bush is the second US president to come to Sofia.

Former US president Bill Clinton visited Bulgaria in 1999, before the country to join NATO and the European Union. The occasion was to express gratitude for Bulgaria's support in the campaign against the regime of the former Yugoslav president Slobodan Milosevic.

In 2003 the US state secretary Colin Powell also visited Bulgaria to mark 100 years of diplomatic relations between Sofia and Washington.

Last year Condoleezza Rice signed in Sofia a bilateral agreement for deployment of US military bases in Bulgaria.

Bulgaria belongs to the closest allies of the US in south-eastern Europe.

There are three joint military bases with the US located on Bulgarian soil.

Mr Bush's visit to Bulgaria is part of is European trip this summer. He will participate in the G-8 meeting in Germany on cooperation in economics, security and politics.

The US president will also visit Czech Republic, Poland, Italy and Albania.

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