Sofia. Bulgaria is in the focus of the new Silk Road and 16+1 initiative, said the executive director of InvestBulgaria Agency, Stamen Yanev, talking to Focus Radio in reference to 4th Local Leaders' Meeting of the Central and East European countries (CEEC) and China, which Sofia will host.

In his words, the Belt and Road Initiative will boost trade between the CEEC and China. Chinese investors have expressed strong interest in projects in Bulgaria, he said. “We have focused on attracting one of China's leading manufacturers of electric cars to Bulgaria in the near future. Another ambition of ours is to open a technology development centre for electric vehicles in Bulgaria,” Stamen Yanev explained. Bulgaria will provide knowledge on how to work with European funding, while China will add scale to projects and initiatives, he commented. The multiplying effect of the funds invested by China in key sectors, such as infrastructure and energy, will generate additional funds to be further invested in projects in the region and in the countries of the initiative, Yanev said.