/ world today news/ Bulgaria once again missed a wonderful foreign policy opportunity to position itself as a constructive player and a player in general in the Western Balkans region, with which to fill with content the repeated years that this region is important for Sofia.
Instead, as an EU member state which, although not on the front line of the refugee flow, is nevertheless affected, ask for a regional meeting to see what help our neighbors Serbia and Macedonia and also Greece, which represent the Western Balkan route of the refugees, Bulgaria is mobilizing its army to guard the borders. From the mouth of the foreign minister, statements are heard very similar to those of the rulers in Hungary, who are building a wall along the border with Serbia.
Apart from asking for a regional meeting, which, according to Macedonia and Serbia, should have been held a long time ago, Bulgaria could also be active at the European level in the request to seek a unified solution. And here it is not only about help to deal with refugees, but also about attitude. The Serbian First Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ivica Dacic quite rightly asked what message the countries are sending, which, by building walls, practically isolate Serbia and Macedonia. Both countries were isolated from European attention for a long enough time. In other words, Bulgaria managed to kill two birds with one stone – it did not use the opportunity to score points at the European level by setting an example (as Germany did by refusing to implement the Dublin Agreement, i.e. returning refugees to the first country they came to of the EU-territory) or to come up with a constructive proposal for a community solution to the problem, and also for solidarity with the candidate countries, which neither have the financial capabilities nor the appropriate infrastructure.
And by strengthening its border with Serbia and Macedonia, Bulgaria practically erected a wall with these two countries, which are key to the stability of the region and its European perspective. The Berlin process is an initiative of Germany, which was joined by Austria last year, which is why it is the host this year. The process enjoys the special support of Slovenia and Croatia, and this year France and Italy joined it. The absence of Bulgaria in Vienna did not go unnoticed. In her extremely frank speech, Ivica Dacic stated that Bulgaria, Greece and Hungary should have participated in the meeting because they are part of the problem. He called for the Berlin Process to be expanded to include these three countries. Something that was greeted coolly by German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and EU Commissioner Hahn.
However, the host, Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz, called on the EU to self-criticize. According to him, it is a shame that a member state allows thousands of refugees to cross into non-EU countries, referring to Greece, but the same can probably be said for Bulgaria and Hungary, which, while protecting themselves from refugees, redirect them to other countries- member states such as Croatia and Romania. And Chancellor Werner Faymann gave special thanks to all those involved in the Berlin process, calling it a demonstration of togetherness. And if Dacic was diplomatic in only calling for Bulgaria, Hungary and especially Greece to be invited to join the Berlin Process, Croatia’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vesna Pusic, answered without hesitation when I asked what she thought of countries that build walls, of to beware of refugees: “Nothing good”. Croatia will not build a wall, he assured.
Bulgaria refuses to be in solidarity with the countries of the Eurozone, because this is not our problem and we are very poor. It refuses to stand in solidarity with its neighbors and its partners in the EU to solve the refugee case because, again, we are poor and it is difficult for us. We are doing nothing to seek a European solution. We choose the least resistance – we protect the borders and that’s it. However, we forget how much the EU was in solidarity with us. First of all, with the money we receive from European funds, although we have not dealt with corruption and organized crime. We forgot that we were accepted into the EU unprepared, albeit with a Mechanism, and now we want to be accepted into Schengen, claiming that this will not weaken our fight against corruption and organized crime.
We want to have an active foreign policy in the Balkans, we say that we are ready to help these countries on their way to the EU, but we slam and bolt the door at the first danger. Otherwise, he caresses the ear when our foreign minister gets angry with Russia, but this is still not foreign policy. Good diplomacy requires action, and excellent diplomacy implies proactivity and good timing. It’s a pity for another missed opportunity, because the situation can be looked at from another angle. According to Dacic, in this way the EU isolates the affected countries (Macedonia and Serbia), but it is also true that Bulgaria isolates itself – both from the countries of the region and from the EU.
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