Bulgaria's government is seeking to facilitate the inflow of investments from Qatar, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov declared in Doha.

During his visit in Doha, Bulgaria's top diplomat and his Qatari counterpart State Minister of Foreign Affairs Khalid Bin Mohammad Al Attiyah signed an inter-governmental agreement on visa exemption for diplomatic and special passports.

Finalisation of negotiations on the document coincided with the signing in Sofia of a contract on outsourcing visa services for people from the Gulf who want to visit Bulgaria, the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry announced, adding that the outsourcing reception centers, as they are known, for processing visas will be operational within one monthl
 
"Our main goal is to facilitate both Qatari investments in Bulgaria and visits by business representatives from across the region," Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov declared in Doha.

During a meeting with the head of state of Qatar, Emir Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, Minister Mladenov said that Qatar occupies a strategic place in Bulgaria's relations with the Gulf.

Co-operation can be developed in three main areas - investment in farming, tourism and energy, he added.

In Doha, Minister Mladenov also received by Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud.

Working meetings were held with executives of Qatari Diar, part of the Qatar Investment Authority, with the Qatar Foundation, and with the chairman of the Qatar Tourism Authority, Ahmed Abdullah Al Nuaimi.