Japan, Bulgaria partner on drone development
Representatives of Japanese companies in the freight forwarding and logistics sector are launching a partnership with Bulgarian companies for joint research and development of drones that meet Japanese technical requirements and specifications, as highlighted during a meeting between Bulgaria's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, Investments and Industry Alexander Poulev and representatives of a Japanese business delegation that is on an official visit to Bulgaria.
The delegation is led by Fukushiro Nukaga, a Japanese statesman, former minister of finance, and former House of Representatives speaker, Poulev's Ministry reported on Tuesday, CE Report quotes BTA.
The agenda included the possibility of granting domestically produced drones access to the Japanese aviation sector through the necessary permits.
Poulev said: "We want to transform the good relations between Bulgaria and Japan into concrete economic projects, investments, manufacturing, and joint technologies. Our goal is for the friendship between the two nations to have an increasingly strong economic and industrial dimension."
He added that Bulgaria seeks accelerated industrial cooperation with Japan.
During the meeting, the parties discussed opportunities for deepening bilateral economic and industrial cooperation. The Japanese representatives expressed a specific interest in partnerships with Bulgarian companies in the food and beverage industry and the aviation sector.
The Deputy Prime Minister emphasized that Bulgaria has a number of competitive advantages for attracting Japanese investment, which include the country's strategic geographic location, a well-educated and skilled workforce, and access to the European market. He stated that Bulgaria is establishing itself as a gateway for Japanese business to Europe.
Poulev highlighted attracting investment and industrialization, digitization, the adoption of artificial intelligence and high technologies, infrastructure modernization, as key areas of the government's programme that create opportunities for a more active economic partnership with Japan.
He added: "We are making investment a national priority – stimulating high-tech manufacturing and diversifying future investment flows. We want to expand our partnerships beyond Bulgaria's traditional markets."
Among the priority areas for cooperation, he cited energy, high technology, artificial intelligence, transportation connectivity, and industrialization.
The Deputy Prime Minister said that Bulgaria is open to learning from Japan's experience as one of the world's leading technology nations.
He said: "We want Japanese companies to contribute their expertise and know-how to the processes of economic transformation in Bulgaria."
Poulev highlighted infrastructure modernization as another strategic priority.
“We are establishing an entirely new legislative framework for public-private partnerships. Through it, we will mobilize private capital to modernize the country's infrastructure – energy, transportation connectivity, and industrial zones. We want to be more ambitious and invite Japanese companies to participate in all processes related to this economic transformation," he said.
It was revealed at the meeting that Bulgarian machinery is already at the core of technological solutions used by a Japanese company that offers know-how and solutions for farms in India.
The Japanese delegation included the Bulgarian-Japanese former sumo wrestler Kaloyan Mahlyanov Kotooshu, who has made a significant contribution to the development of bilateral relations between Bulgaria and Japan. Also participating in the meeting were Bulgarian Ambassador to Japan Marieta Arabadzhieva and Japanese Ambassador to Bulgaria Chikahisa Sumi.
In July, Poulev met with Chikahisa Sumi and reported that Bulgaria will deepen its economic and investment partnership with Japan.
Photo: Ministry of Economy, Investments and Industry
