Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid has departed to Bulgaria on an official visit.

The foreign minister departed on the three-day visit to Bulgaria's capital Sofia on Monday night. He is accompanied by High Commissioner of the Maldives to the United Kingdom, Dr. Farahanaz Faizal and her third secretary, Mariyam Afnan.

Shahid will meet his Bulgarian counterpart Svetlan Stoev during the visit, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs revealing that they will "hold bilateral talks to explore avenues for cooperation to fortify the existing bilateral relations between both countries".

Minister Shahid will also meet with Minister of Tourism of Bulgaria and other senior officials from the Government of Bulgaria, and explore opportunities to enhance cooperation in various sectors between the two nations.

While this is Shahid's second trip to a foreign nation since being elected the president of the 76th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, the foreign ministry said that he will also be sharing his vision and discussing his priorities for his "Presidency of Hope".

Shahid's first visit as UNGA president-elect was to India from the 22nd to 24th of July. While the foreign minister traveled there on the invitation of the Indian government, he met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the trip.

While the new PGA will take office in September, Foreign Minister Shahid is the first UNGA President elected from the Maldives in the UN’s 75 year history and the 55 years since the Maldives became a member. Shahid has revealed his intentions to serve both roles simultaneously during his term as UNGA president.