Information channels multiply on a daily basis, attempts at lies and manipulation easily reach more people than ever, and political, corporate, and economic interests benefit from that. This new reality makes the mission of journalists even more responsible and difficult – not just to convey information, but to present what is happening in context, distinguishing facts from their interpretations, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev said in a greetings address to the 30th General Assembly of the Association of the Balkan News Agencies – Southeast Europe (ABNA-SE), hosted by the BTA Bulgarian News Agency in Burgas on Monday, according to Agerpres.

The topic was also resumed by Bulgarian caretaker Prime Minister Galab Donev, according to whom the flow of information grows exponentially and it is imperative to suppress fake news and disinformation. He believes this is not just a matter of being properly informed but also a matter of security. In his speech delivered to the participants, Donev voices conviction that professionalism is the key to striking a balance between the speed of information, its presentation in an appealing way and the unwavering pursuit of truth.

Representatives of the eleven news agencies members of the Association of the Balkan News Agencies – Southeast Europe (ABNA-SE) gathered in Burgas for the 30th ABNA-SE General Assembly. The event is mottoed „Together for TRUE News”.

At the General Assembly in Burgas there were adopted the proposals that the Association of the Balkan News Agencies – Southeast Europe (ABNA-SE) will be headquartered in Bulgaria and Bulgarian News Agency (BTA) Director General Kiril Valchev will be its Secretary General for three years. Greece’s ANA-MPA Director-General Aimilios Perdikaris was elected ABNA-SE President.

The General Assembly also adopted the ABNA-SE Statutes, based on the principles enshrined in the Statutes of the European Alliance of News Agencies (EANA).

The Balkan news agencies gather in this format once a year.

The idea to create the Association of the Balkan News Agencies appeared in September 1994, during a meeting in Sofia of the representatives of the news agencies from the Balkans. The first founding General Assembly of ABNA took place in June 1995 in Thessaloniki, Greece. The purpose of the organisation is to allow the development of cooperation between news agencies in the region, as well as to contribute to the establishment of a climate of peace, friendship and cooperation in the Balkans.

Over the years, the Association of Balkan News Agencies was joined by ATA from Albania, FENA from Bosnia, BTA from Bulgaria, ANA-MPA from Greece, CNA from Cyprus, KosovaPress from Kosovo, MIA from the Republic of North Macedonia, AGERPRES from Romania, TANJUG from Serbia, ANADOLU from Turkey, HINA from Croatia.

Agerpres