; he said both Bulgarian and Greek governments hope to set up an international company as soon as possible to undertake the construction of the pipeline, and stressed the importance of the project for both countries economically and politically, including for their energy security. In Thessaloniki, the foreign ministers of both countries discussed the issue of the Bugarian government's reported withdrawal from the Bulgarian consortium for the construction of the pipeline. Bulgarian Foreign Minister and Deputy Premier Ivailo Kalfin said the government's interest in the project remained "steadfast and undiminished" despite the unexpected collapse (announced on 3 May) of the consortium of Bulgarian firms participating in the three-nation project. Mr Kalfin said the developments will not delay but "accelerate work to complete the project." Greek Foreign Minister Dora Bakoyannis told reporters she had received assurances from the Bulgarian prime minister and the foreign minister that the project would go ahead as planned. The next meeting by all the three sides involved in the project – Russia, Bulgaria, and Greece – is due to be held later this month in Moscow, although no date has yet been fixed. The countries signed an agreement in April, 2005, to build the 285-km long Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline that will allow Russia to export oil to Europe through the Black Sea, by-passing the busy Bosporus Strait in Turkey. Some media reports have said that during US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's recent visit to Athens and Sofia, the US government put pressure on Greece and Bulgaria to give up the project for fear of Europe's dependence on Russian oil.