H.E. Mr. Procopios Mantzouranis, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Greece to the Republic of Bulgaria

Ambassador Mantzouranis is a jurist. He started his diplomatic career at the Embassy of Greece in Sofia. After successful mandates in other countries and the mission of the Greek Permanent Representation at the European Union in Brussels, since November 2002 he is Ambassador to Bulgaria. The first interview His Excellency gave for Bulgarian Diplomatic Review magazine was published in issue 1/2003.

Your Excellency, In 2005 we celebrate the 125th jubilee of the establishment of Bulgaria-Greece diplomatic relations. What initiatives does the Greek Embassy in Sofia envisage for marking this important anniversary?
The decree for the establishment of diplomatic relations between our two countries was signed by the then Greek King George 1st on the 5th of May 1880. And we think it is going to be a very useful thing to present to the Bulgarian public the history of our diplomatic relations with, of course, its different moments. We are in discussions with some Bulgarian competent persons, representing competent organizations, to find the best way to proceed to a colloquium at sometime by the end of spring. We might also enrich it with an official visit of Greek officials. I believe this is going to be a very interesting colloquium with speakers from Bulgaria and Greece. I think that the items would be very interesting and they will not refer only to the past but also to the perspectives of the future.

I can’t tell you with accuracy now but we might combine the event with a visit of a Greek music ensemble, it could also be a symphony orchestra.

We would be glad to cover all the initiatives undertaken by the Embassy in this respect. And speaking of future prospects, how does Greece assess Bulgaria’s integration in the European Union?
We have been working very hard since a few years now to help Bulgaria in her European road. It could not be otherwise. Greece and Bulgaria are very strong neighbors – they have almost 200 kilometers of common frontier, and they have a very strong past of relations and also very tight economic relations – hundreds of thousands of Bulgarians live in Greece now and some thousands of Greek citizens are living permanently in Bulgaria. We are really happy to see Bulgaria in her path of joining the European Union as from January 2007. I should remind that the provisions included in the conclusions of the Thessaloniki Summit of June 2003, during the last Greek Presidency of the European Union, were very important both for the Western and the Eastern Balkans. In the latter case, I am talking about Bulgaria and Romania. And we are confident that everything will happen without any impediment till January 2007.

What are we to expect in the future Bulgaria-Greece relations? Is anything going to change in this respect once we join the European Union?
Whether we want it or not, the bilateral cooperation between EU member states changes from its former situation. You have to act as a member state of the Union. You have to act according to the European law and the decisions taken in Brussels. We should know that, say, 80% of the foreign policy of the member states crosses through Brussels and at least 80% of the economic policy of a member state goes through Brussels. Accordingly, we are going to act by virtue of the European law in our relations and this will change greatly whatever has been left from the situation of Bulgaria not yet being a member state. Bulgaria will be a member state of the Union and we will all live our common European life.

In your opinion, are there any unexplored spheres of cooperation between our two countries?
I actually believe that there are no unexplored sectors in our relations. Of course, there are sectors that have been exhaustively explored and others that have been left in the shadow. Besides, there are things that have to be settled in the framework of the Union. For instance the situation of hundreds of Bulgarians living in Greece will be settled – I am talking also about social security issues. And there will be a greater collaboration in the field of cultural policy, which will not be anymore based exclusively on national bilateral criteria. It will be based on the provisions of the European treaties and texts, which is important. When you read the correspondent article of the Amsterdam Treaty on the Union then you see that, for instance, you have the obligation to bring to the fore the cultural identity of any other member state. The Union has to do this. Therefore, a new rationale is going to be established in the less explored sectors of our relations. Things are going to change greatly in our relations. They already have changed to some extent, now it’s going to be an entire change.

Bulgaria and Greece are attractive tourist destinations. Do you see prospects for cooperation in this particular field?
I know that already tourist agencies from both countries collaborate. Bulgarians are going to the Aegean Sea and Greeks are coming to Bulgaria – until now mostly for winter sports. Bulgaria, which happens to be a beautiful and rich country, has a huge potential in winter sports. And I know that new possibilities in winter tourism are going to be opened mostly for the many Greek tourists coming to Bulgaria. The opening of new cross-border checkpoints, one of which will be opened this year, I think will make the prospects of cooperation in tourism much richer.

Do you think that the Greek citizens are interested in practicing cultural tourism in Bulgaria?
Of course, this is one of the main purposes of tourism. Have a look at the Greek busses full of tourists coming in Sofia every weekend! This is not simply to go to Sofia just to see the city. It’s also to see its monuments. But before coming to Sofia all tourists visit Rila. And if you go to Plovdiv then you will see too many big busses full of Greek tourists visiting the monuments of the area. We are Orthodox as you are and we are very much interested in the Orthodox monuments of the Balkans, but we also would like to know their antique history. You don’t have only Orthodox monuments – have a look at your Thracian treasures. But I think that the tourist agencies have already prepared these cultural itineraries for Greek tourists in Bulgaria.

Maria Totomanova