French Ambassador: French Companies More than Satisfied with Bulgaria

Novinite has interviewed H.E. Xavier Lapeyre de Cabanes, who apart from English, German and Portuguese is also fluent in Bulgarian. This is not surprising, since between 1991 and 1995 he worked at the French Embassy in Sofia and is, moreover, married to a Bulgarian.

De Cabanes has graduated from the Institut d'édutes politiques du Paris. The diplomatic missions in which he has taken part include ones to Cyprus, Brazil and Djibouti.

The French Ambassador to Bulgaria was picked by readers of Novinite's Bulgarian-language service as 2014 Personality in the News in the Diplomacy section.

Mr Ambassador, 20 years ago you came to Bulgaria to work here as a press attaché at the French Embassy. What has changed since then?

Bulgaria has changed, mostly because it has become a democratic country: institutions are stabilized and functioning, there are elections... Despite deficiencies (as in all countries, [here they are] undoubtedly more than in some but less than in many others), there is no doubt about the nature of the political regime in which Bulgarians wish to live. There is no will for "reinstatement", unlike what could have happened in mid-1990s: the government of [former PM] Zhan Videnov was the evidence that the path was wrong following the cabinet of Lyuben Berov which did nothing to prevent the boom of organized crime and corruption.

Another serious change: Bulgaria is a full member of the European family: 20 years ago, Bulgaria aspired to join NATO and the European Union. Currently it is a member of these two organizations and participates fully in building Europe at a political level. By the way, Bulgaria will chair the Council of the European Union...