Netanyahu with the Bulgarian Foreign Minister
Netanyahu with the Bulgarian Foreign MinisterKobi Gideon/GPO

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met on Thursday with Bulgarian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ekaterina Zakharieva at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem.

It was recalled during the meeting that this year marks 30 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and Bulgaria. Prime Minister Netanyahu and Bulgarian Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Zakharieva emphasized that bilateral relations are very good and that their meeting was an opportunity to further strengthen and enhance cooperation in various fields.

Netanyahu said at the start of the meeting, "Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Zakharieva, it's a pleasure to welcome you to Jerusalem."

"Prime Minister Boyko Borissov is a very close friend of mine and of the State of Israel and I'm very happy to hear that he is doing well and is back on the job. Please give him my warmest regards."

"Our friendship has a long, long experience and it's a shared experience that goes back to Roman times. The Jewish people settled in Bulgaria in Roman times. And of course, we never forget the exemplary leadership of the clergy and the intellectuals of Bulgaria, in Sofia, in World War II, in the Holocaust. We'll never forget that. And since then we have a blossoming friendship that I had, I personally, as deputy foreign minister at the time had something to do with it, so I'm very proud of it,” said Netanyahu.

“We are taking our relationship into the future in the areas of technology, and trade, and diplomacy and security and every possible direction. So I'm very happy to have the opportunity to forge these very strong relations and make them even stronger and to welcome you to Jerusalem."