Brussels - The Stability Pact welcomes the official start of construction works for the second Danube crossing, yesterday (13 May), connecting Vidin in Bulgaria to Calafat in Romania, and removing a bottleneck in the network of major transport routes for Central and South Eastern Europe. The bridge was one of the first infrastructure projects promoted by the Stability Pact, both as a tool for economic development and for its symbolic value, helping the Danube to become an instrument of regional co-operation rather than a barrier.

The turning of the first sod at the construction site by Bulgarian Prime Minister Stanishev yesterday came after more than seven years of negotiations to define the most appropriate features of the bridge, that will consist of a two lane road and a railway track.

Special Co-ordinator Busek, who attended the ceremony yesterday, stressed the political and symbolic relevance of the project that will allow “the Danube to unite the two countries and the region as a whole rather that separating them”.

The bridge will have a strong impact on the economic development of the areas on both sides of the river but will also be a key segment of Pan-European Transport Corridor IV, going from Dresden/Nurnberg in Germany to Constanţa, Thessaloniki and Istanbul, connecting South Eastern European countries with Central and Western Europe, and providing a basis to improve their economic relations.

The bridge was one of the first infrastructure projects to be promoted by the Stability Pact, following its establishment in 1999. The initial decision to build it resulted from a Memorandum of Understanding between the then Stability Pact Special Co-ordinator Hombach, EU Enlargement Commissioner Verhuegen and the Bulgarian and Romanian governments, on 7 February 2000. The project, that will cost 236 Million Euro, attracted funding from the EU ISPA programme, the European Investment Bank and other international financial institutions.

For further information, please contact Stability Pact's Spokesperson
Mr Alessandro Rotta at the SP Secretariat in Brussels
(Tel: +32 2 401 87 07 or press@stabilitypact.org).
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PR2007/008