The Executive President of BIA Radosvet Radev participated on the 22 and 23 November 2018 in the Council of Presidents (CoPres) of BusinessEurope. The traditional meeting of European business leaders for the second half year was held in Vienna and is a part of the program of the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU.
The forum was launched with a meeting with the Austrian President Alexander Van der Belen, during which views were exchanged on the current political and economic situation in Europe. Digitization and inequalities in Europe were the main highlights of the speeches. In the context of the upcoming European elections, the issue of increasing support for nationalist formations was particularly concerning. The Austrian president stressed that Europe should thank the business because only through it, it can survive as a factor on the international economic and political scene.
The main topics that the presidents of BusinessEurope member organizations discussed during their plenary session were related to Brexit, the forthcoming European Parliament elections and future European policies in the economic sphere. Among the discussed topics were also the economic relations between the EU and the US. In this regard, three key documents were adopted: the Guidelines for the development of Europe by 2030, the Brexit Progress Report and the Energy and Climate Status and Future Report.
The participants in the meeting also adopted the minutes of the previous meeting of the Council of Presidents, which took place on 18 May in Sofia and was hosted by the Bulgarian Industrial Association. The May program included a meeting with the President of the Republic Rumen Radev and a discussion with the Minister for the Bulgarian Presidency, Lilyana Pavlova. BIA, a member of BusinessEurope since 1999, was highly praised for the organization and conduct of the event by the delegates.
The CoPres agenda also included the decision for adoption as an Associate Member of BusinessEurope of CONCORDIA (Romania) and SAE (Serbia), as well as a decision to renew the membership as an observer of MEF (Montenegro).
