Young people in Bulgaria today are contemporaries of Bulgaria’s preparation and accession to the European Union, they are the European generation of Bulgaria, said Speaker of Parliament Tsveta Karayancheva. She opened a public discussion on the youth vision for the future of Europe. The event, held under the auspices of the Parliament, was attended by French students and students from the New Bulgarian University and Sofia University “St Kliment Ohridski”. The discussion, which took place in the Aula of Sofia University, was organised by the European Institute and the National Representation of Student Unions.

The Speaker of Parliament said that the event marked the beginning of a new stage in the youth debate on the future of the European Union. In her words, it is in the intergenerational dialogue that European citizenship gains its true meaning as a guarantee for the development of Europe as a space of prosperity for all. Tsveta Karayancheva said that young peoples’ views and opinions are very important because they will be the ones to take care of the common European home.

Our experience has shown that Bulgaria is contributing to the process of European integration mostly in the areas in which we have achieved an agreement on reforms and initiatives as regards our national politics, said the Speaker of Parliament. The Bulgarian national interest is to deepen the process of European integration, said Tsveta Karayancheva. The more issues we manage to agree on in an open and honest debate, the more active our participation will be in the design and development of our common European project, she added.

The Speaker of Parliament said that the priorities of the Bulgarian Presidency outlined the topics on which the Bulgarian and European agendas coincided and were supplementary. The Parliamentary Dimension of the Presidency fully reflects the fundamental ideas about active citizens’ culture and political representation, which are now in the focus of heated discussions, she said. We find a deep meaning in the slogan of the Bulgarian Presidency, which can be also seen at the entrance of the Parliament, “United we stand strong”, because we know that to achieve this we need to have a debate based on the values of freedom, equality and solidarity, said Tsveta Karayancheva.

The Speaker of Parliament wished the participants a fruitful and dynamic discussion, and agreement on key ideas and messages, which will become part of the process of development of a new Europe.

At the event, the young people discussed the significance and role of the civil society, the need of independent media, new forms of civil participation, as well as the role of digital transformation and our fundamental rights.