At a meeting with NASA Director Bill Nelson, Minister of Innovation and Growth Rosen Karadimov said that his ministry is actively pursuing a policy of establishing partnerships for the development of key technologies with space applications. Bulgaria's strong positions in high and information technologies make it an excellent partner for solutions in the field of data collection and processing (hardware and software), including applications for artificial intelligence and cyber security in space missions, the Ministerr stressed and noted that the goal is for Bulgaria to become a regional leader in innovation in the space sector. Nelson and Karadimov discussed Bulgaria's strategic partnership under the Artemis Accords with NASA, the Innovation and Growth Ministry reported.
The meeting at the Ministry of Innovation and Growth was also attended by the US Ambassador Kenneth Merten and representatives of the NASA administration, as well as Deputy Ministers Prof. Georgi Angelov and Krasimir Yakimov, Chief of Staff Maria Petrova, Advisor Delyana Ivanova and Director of the Policy and Analysis Directorate Mira Yosifova.
At the end of 2023, Bulgaria became the 32nd country to join NASA's Artemis Accords. The international cooperation on Artemis aims to support the exploration of space for peaceful purposes.
"Senator Bill Nelson's visit is a strong message to all space partner countries in the context of Bulgaria's accession to the Artemis Accords. Bulgaria is a reliable and secure partner of all the countries that have signed the Accords," stressed the Minister of Innovation and Growth. He outlined the country's significant potential for development in the space sector thanks to its strategic location and growing technological sector. The two sides discussed the country's capacity in space-related fields: communications, surveillance, unmanned aerial vehicles, cyber security, applications of artificial intelligence, collecting and processing large amounts of data, and training and development of talents and specialists.
Minister Karadimov outlined some concrete proposals of the Ministry of Innovation and Growth for deepening the cooperation on Artemis and for the development of Bulgarian companies through initiatives aimed at the integration of Bulgarian technologies in international space projects. This will contribute to increasing the competitiveness of the national economy. Possibilities for student and researcher exchange programmes with NASA and other international space agencies were also discussed, including internships and joint scientific projects, participation in international space research databases with Bulgarian analyses and research in the field of remote sensing of the Earth, and others.
Karadimov also stated that his ministry leads a working group with the goal to develop of a national space strategy and has the ambition of creating a National Space Agency. The good cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency in the previous years and the participation of Bulgarian researchers and specialists in joint projects were also discussed.
NASA Director Bill Nelson expressed his good impressions of the Bulgarian students and schoolchildren and said that their enthusiasm and detailed questions about space missions and technologies is a reason for pride for Bulgaria and for optimism for the new future related to the space industry.
Ambassador Merten thanked the Ministry of Innovation and Growth for the excellent cooperation and expressed readiness for assistance both in deepening the partnership on Artemis and in establishing new cooperation between Bulgaria and the USA.
The Bulgarian side expressed gratitude to NASA and the US Embassy for their support for the Sofia Science and Art Festival, titled "Hello Space, Bulgaria Calling""