Bulgaria will not recognise the results of the referendum in Crimea. – Foreign Minister, Kristian Vigenin

Bulgaria will not recognise the results of the March 16 2014 referendum in Crimea, foreign minister Kristian Vigenin said after talks with his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier, according to a report by Deutsche Welle.
Bulgaria would support and assist the German idea of a contact group for direct talks between the Russian and Ukrainian authorities, Vigenin was quoted as saying.
If Russia did not show willingness to compromise, the European Union would have to take decisions related to possible sanctions, he said.

Bulgaria hoped that diplomatic efforts would achieve a result because there was “no alternative but diplomacy,” Vigenin said.
Problems could still be resolved through diplomacy, taking into account the concerns and interests of the Russian side, he said.

• Vigenin underlined that Bulgaria’s current participation in a naval exercise jointly with United States and Romanian vessels in the Black Sea was not related to the situation in Ukraine.

Sabre-rattling in the region was a show of power that would not help, he said.
It was unrealistic to believe that a US warship entering the Black Sea could pose a threat to Russia and to the Russian Black Sea fleet.
“I do not want to give the impression that Bulgaria somehow is participating in a show of force against Russia,” Vigenin said...................http://sofiaglobe.com/2014/03/11/
11/3/14
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