Ms Taneva affirmed the strong support of the Bulgarian government and its Ministry in the organisation of the Congress. The event will showcase the revival of Bulgarian vitiviniculture, which has seen a significant transformation in recent years.

The OIV Director General underlined the unanimous agreement of the OIV Member States to taking Bulgaria up on its invitation, 50 years after the last OIV General Assembly held in Sofia in 1966. Together with Ms Vesselina Evdokimova, Attaché for Agriculture and Food at the Embassy of Bulgaria in Paris, and with Mr Krasimir Koev, Director of the Executive Agency for Vine and Wine, Jean-Marie Aurand participated in working meetings to initiate the first logistical steps and visit the locations that will host the experts and delegates who will be taking part in the 40th OIV Congress.

The Director General praised the strong direct involvement of the Agency and its collaborators, and expressed his conviction that all of the conditions necessary to make this annual summit of the global vitivinicultural sector a success would be met.

Jean-Marie Aurand took part in the ninth Cyprus Wine Competition as President of the tasting jury. This competition, placed under the patronage of the OIV, was very well organised and brought together 132 greatly diverse, good-quality wines.

During a meeting with Minister for Agriculture Mr Nicolaos Kouyalis, the Director General emphasised the good collaboration that already exists with the teams of the Department of Agriculture and more specifically the Cypriot Viticulture and Oenology Section. He also expressed the desire for even stronger involvement of the experts in the work of the Organisation. The Minister responded favourably to this proposal, insisting on the interest of an active presence at the OIV for Cyprus.

A decision was made to hold a presentation of Cypriot wines at the OIV headquarters in the near future.

The cultivation of vines in Cyprus – which dates back over 6000 years – is part of the country's history.

The country enjoys a number of advantages that will enable it to develop its vitivinicultural sector and add value to its wines, including promising local varieties (Xynisteri, Maratheftiko, etc.), a growing domestic market driven by tourism and an absence of Phylloxera.

Wine production is currently fluctuating at around 10,000 hl per year for an area under vines of approximately 7000 ha.