Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova said at the opening of the International Ministerial Conference on Corridor VIII in Sofia on Thursday that the Pan-European Corridor has transcended the scope of an infrastructure project and now involves geopolitics, economic opportunities and Europe’s security.
“Of course, Corridor VIII is about connectivity, but connectivity today is much more about infrastructure, so it is not just rails and roads, but it’s about geopolitics, about economic opportunities and about security,” she said.
The forum brings together ministers and senior officials from the countries along Corridor VIII: Bulgaria, Albania, Italy and the Republic of North Macedonia – as well as representatives of Romania, Kosovo and Montenegro. It is also attended by European Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos, senior officials from the European External Action Service and NATO, and representatives of the US, UK and Ukraine.
The programme includes three discussion panels focusing on the geopolitical context of Corridor VIII; transport, energy and economic connectivity; and military mobility, security, hybrid threats, innovation and new technologies. According to Petrova, these topics are not separate discussions but parts of the same strategic question: whether Corridor VIII can become a functioning axis that strengthens Europe’s connectivity, competitiveness, security and resilience.
Petrova said Russia’s war against Ukraine has fundamentally changed how infrastructure and connectivity are viewed and their role in the region’s security architecture. “Secured transport routes, diversified supply chains, energy interconnections and resilient critical infrastructure are no longer only questions of economic efficiency that drive our businesses forward. They are increasingly elements of national and collective security,” she said.
At the same time, Europe is strengthening its capacity to respond to an increasingly competitive and contested international environment economically. The future of Ukraine and the European perspective of the Western Balkans are directly linked to the security and stability of the continent. It is in this broader context that Corridor VIII should be understood, said Petrova.
It can become a strategic East-West axis connecting the Adriatic and the Black Sea and linking the Western Balkans more closely with the European Union. “For Bulgaria, this is a long-standing priority, one that did not always have the right momentum for action, but its significance goes well beyond our national interests. Corridor VIII is a European project and the presence of the European Commission here really shows the role that it really plays,” the Foreign Minister said.
It should be discussed what Corridor VIII can contribute to the region’s strategic architecture and whether stronger connectivity can reinforce regional stability, support the European integration of the Western Balkans and create stronger links between the Adriatic, the Balkans, the Black Sea, and the rest of Europe. Also, whether it can help diversify routes and reduce strategic dependencies, she said.
These questions cannot be answered by infrastructure ministries alone. They require political commitment at the highest level, sustained cross-border cooperation, and shared understanding that a corridor is not just one stretch. It is a part of a wider European and strategic landscape, according to Petrova.
She recalled that in 2027, Bulgaria will co-host, together with the European Commission, a regional connectivity summit. It aims to set the stage for accelerated development of the link between Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia through the Middle Corridor.
The aim is to diversify routes, to triple trade flows, and significantly reduce transit times for goods by 2030. Bulgaria is also seeking to highlight how this Middle Corridor interplays with Corridor VIII. “How do we connect these transcontinental corridors with the connectivity already present within the EU or within Europe, including the Western Balkans?,” she asked.
Petrova stressed that the geopolitical value of Corridor VIII will ultimately depend on the political commitment behind it. “And we have seen that when political commitment behind it falls, then the progress on the corridor also falls,” she said.
Political commitment must be translated into infrastructure, investments and functioning connections. In her words, a strategic corridor must first and foremost work in practice. “A railway connection that stops at one border, or a road network that is constrained by administrative bottlenecks is not one that can really be used.”
Therefore, she said, Corridor VIII should be viewed as an integrated system in which transport infrastructure is the backbone, but which should also serve as a platform for energy connectivity and trade.
Speaking at a news conference after the International Ministerial Conference, Petrova said Corridor VIII is not just a line on the map but an opportunity for greater regional connectivity. She said the corridor should be viewed in terms of transport, military mobility and energy, as well as part of a wider network of corridors.
Petrova said the conference had given political impetus to an important initiative that had been a priority for successive governments for years but had not always received the political will needed to meet deadlines. The meeting has made it possible to put the project back at the top of the agenda, she said.
The news conference was also attended by European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos, North Macedonia’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Timco Mutsunski, Albania’s Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Ferit Hoxha, and Nicola Verola, Director General for Europe and International Trade Policy at Italy’s Foreign Ministry.
Foreign Minister Petrova: Corridor VIII Is Already Much More than Infrastructure THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-08 10:06:00
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