Bulgaria Joins Initiative for Decisive Action to Strengthen Competitiveness of European Industry

Bulgaria is joining the joint initiative of the industry ministers of Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain to take decisive action to strengthen the competitiveness of European industry, the Ministry of Economy and Industry said..

“We share the understanding that the competitiveness of industry must be a leading priority for European countries, and that the green transition should be implemented in a way that preserves production capacity, encourages investment and safeguards employment within the European Union,” the letter from the caretaker Economy and Industry Minister Irina Shtonova to Germany's Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Katherina Reiche states, as quoted in the press release. With the letter, the country officially expresses its willingness to support the initiative, which is a continuation of the Berlin Declaration of November 3, 2025, signed by Bulgaria.

The Ministry recalls that nationally representative employers’ organisations and trade unions stated in a joint position their desire for Bulgaria to join the European initiative “Friends of Industry”. With the letter sent, the Ministry of Economy and Industry expresses its clear position in seeking the best solutions to strengthen the competitiveness of European industry and to achieve a balanced and investment-oriented approach in a situation with so many global challenges.

At the beginning of the week, employers and trade unions expressed in a joint declaration their serious concern regarding the growing risks to the competitiveness of European and Bulgarian industry arising from the increasing regulatory burden, high energy costs and the instability of the carbon emissions market. They pointed out that in the context of intensified global competition and accelerated industrial transformation, European industry needs policies that create a predictable regulatory environment, encourage investment and protect production chains and jobs within the European Union, and they declared their support for the joint initiative of the industry ministers.