Foreign ambassadors welcomed at Cotroceni for the presentation of their letters of credence

President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday welcomed several ambassadors on the occasion of the presentation of the letters of credence, informed the Presidential Administration. Thus, the head of the state welcomed Paul McGarry, the Ambassador of the Republic of Ireland, Philippe Henri Pierre Corneil Benoit, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium, Roelof Sander van Ees, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Therese Hyden, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden, and Lea Stancic, the Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia. Discussing with Paul McGarry, the Ambassador of the Republic of Ireland, President Iohannis highlighted the very good Romanian-Irish cooperation, including at European level. The two interlocutors highlighted the positive contribution of the Romanian community to the development of the Irish society, and also the contribution of the Irish companies operating in Romania to the development of the economic relations between the two countries. They also discussed about United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union, with all the implications of this process for the entire Europe. The Irish Ambassador voiced his appreciation for the remarkable solidarity of the EU in this file, including for Romania's support, specified the Presidential Administration. During his meeting with Philippe Henri Pierre Corneil Benoit, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium, Klaus Iohannis highlighted the very good relations of cooperation existing between Romania and Belgium and his wish for further strengthening and diversifying them, including at an economic level. The two officials further highlighted the fact that Belgium has an increasing Romanian community that is well integrated into the Belgian society and brings a positive contribution to the development of the Belgian economy and the relations between the two states. Ambassador Philippe Henri Pierre Corneil Benoit hailed the organisation of the International Art Festival Europalia in Brussels, which celebrates 50 year of existence this year, with Romania being the guest of honour. In his turn, the head of the Romanian state underscored the importance of our country's participation in this festival and the special opportunity offered by the promotion of Romanian culture in Belgium and the stimulation of the bilateral relations in general. At the meeting with the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, President Iohannis hailed the very good level of bilateral cooperation, especially in economic terms. In his turn, Ambassador Roelof Sander van Ees highlightd the important economic presence of the Dutch investors in the Romanian economy and the wish to further boost the growth of the economic dimension of the bilateral relation. The Ambassador congratulated Romania for its success during the time that it exercised the Presidency of the Council of European Union, with a special mention for the cyber security field, in which the Dutch side is very interested. The Dutch Ambassador also sent condolences for the lost of human lives recently suffered by Romania in Afghanistan. On the occasion of his discussion with the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden, Iohannis voiced his interest in strengthening the relations between the two countries. In this context, the two interlocutors highlighted a series of shared interest fields, already established, among which security, climate changes and Eastern Vicinity. "The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden appreciated the firm approach of President Klaus Iohannis in the rule of law state issue, the anti-corruption fight and gender equality matters, as well as in the fight against racism and anti-Semitism. The Romanian President underscored that Sweden has a Romanian community which is well integrated, in general, and has a positive contribution to the Swedish society. The Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden congratulated our country for its success in exercising the Presidency of the Council of the European Union," showed the same source. Klaus Iohannis also met, on the same occasion, the Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia, highlighting the strengthening of the political dialogue between the two countries, at the highest level, both at bilateral and regional levels, with the most recent example in this respect being the participation of the Romanian President to the Summit of the Three Seas Initiative, which was hosted by Slovenia in June this year. In this context, the Ambassador of the Republic of Slovenia especially thanked Romania for its support in the organisation of the Summit in Slovenia, based on the experience gained in organising the successful Summit in Bucharest, hosted by president Iohannis in September 2018. Both officials went on to express their interest in strengthening the bilateral relations. AGERPRES (RO - author: Catalina Matei, editor: Florin Marin; EN - author: Cristina Zaharia, editor: Rodica State)