[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 24 (Monday, June 18, 2007)]
[Pages 791-792]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Luncheon Hosted by President Georgi Parvanov of Bulgaria in 
Sofia

June 11, 2007

    Mrs. Parvanova, Prime Minister, Mr. Speaker, members of the 
Government, and distinguished guests: Laura and I are thrilled to be 
with you, and we're really happy to be in your country.
    You know, sitting here in this beautiful museum reminds me of the 
great history of Bulgaria. And it was important for me to be with 
leaders who are still writing a history of this important country. And 
for a person who was raised in the deserts of Texas, this is a 
magnificent view. It reminds me of the beauty of your country. I was 
telling the President, my only regret is that we didn't have this 
meeting on the beaches.
    I congratulate you on your admission into the EU. A lot of people 
said, there is no way that Bulgaria can do the necessary things to join 
the EU. And you proved the critics wrong. We're proud to be a member of 
NATO with you. Bulgaria is a valued ally of all of us in NATO and a 
valued ally of the United States.
    I thank you for your strong stand for freedom. I thank you for 
helping spread liberty into places like Iraq and Afghanistan, where 
people want to live a peaceful and free life. I appreciate the 
sacrifices the people of this country have made to support the troops 
and their families. I firmly believe that the actions we're taking are 
laying the foundation of peace for generations to come. I think people 
will look back at this moment in history and say, thank God there were 
people who still

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stood strong for liberty and freedom as the alternative to tyranny and 
oppression.
    We discussed a lot of issues. I appreciated your leader's advice on 
Kosovo. It's important advice, and I took it seriously. Kosovo must be 
independent. And I thank them for their advice as to how to best achieve 
that.
    I made it clear the visa policy needs to be changed. And I care 
deeply about the Bulgarian nurses. We're working on a strategy to make 
sure that these nurses come home as quickly as possible.
    We had a constructive, candid, important conversations today. Our 
friendship is strong, and we intend to keep it that way.
    So I'd like to propose a toast to the President, his good wife, to 
the people of Bulgaria, and to the friendship between the United States 
and Bulgaria.

Note: The President spoke at approximately 12:36 p.m. in Sunny Hall at 
the National Museum of History. In his remarks, he referred to Zorka 
Petrova Parvanova, wife of President Parvanov; Prime Minister Sergei 
Stanishev of Bulgaria; and Georgi Georgiev Pirinski, chairman, Bulgarian 
National Assembly. The transcript released by the Office of the Press 
Secretary also included the remarks of President Parvanov.