The opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) has begun its partnership with Greece's main governing party, left-wing SYRIZA, socialist members have announced.
This comes more than a month after SYRIZA overwhelmingly won the elections in Greece, forging a coalition with the Independent Greeks party (ANEL).
The BSP and SYRIZA shook hands during a visit of a socialist delegation, led by the chair of BSP's Sofia-based structure Kaloyan Pargov, to Thessaloniki.
The move is described as the first political contact between the two entities.
In Pargov's words, the opportunities for cooperation between the BSP and SYRIZA in the Balkans and within the EU were discussed during his meetings with the Greek coalition's representatives.
Members of Alexis Tsipras's party were invited to visit Sofia on April 2 to attend a discussion on "the consequences of [EU] economic sanctions imposed on Russia and their impact on the economy of Balkan states," Dnevnik.bg quotes Pargov as saying.
Prospects for boosting Bulgaria-Greece trade were also tabled during this week's meeting.