SOFIA - A joint declaration on the establishment in Bulgaria of an Agricultural Cooperation Demonstration Zone between China and Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) was signed here on Tuesday.

Zhang Taolin, China's Vice-Minister of Agriculture, and Tzvetan Dimitrov, Bulgaria's Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, signed the declaration in the presence of Chinese Ambassador to Bulgaria Zhang Haizhou.

According to the declaration, the setup of the zone aims strengthen the cooperation between China and the 16 CEE countries in agriculture.

Research institutes, businesses and entities in both sides will be encouraged to get involved in the development of the demonstration zone. And exchange and cooperation activities in areas such as agricultural production, mechanization and research, as well as agricultural trade, including the establishment of a cross-border e-commerce platform and distribution centers for agricultural products, will be conducted in the zone, said the declaration.

It will also be encouraged to build connectivity with the trial zones for agricultural cooperation in China, and conduct practical cooperation and exchange with existing modern agricultural zones in CEECs, the declaration said.

The Chinese Vice-Minister of Agriculture said at the signing ceremony that the moment for the creation of this demonstration zone was very appropriate, because China was currently actively working on implementing cooperation programs with Europe, including those under the Belt and Road Initiative.

Zhang said he hoped that this demonstration zone would have a real, practical value in the bilateral relations.

Dimitrov in turn recalled that his country has been hosting the Association for the Promotion of Agricultural Cooperation between China and the CEE Countries, which was established in June 2015.

He said that Bulgaria has made high achievements in agriculture and agricultural science in the semi-mountainous and mountainous regions, and efforts in this direction would bring a success.