Denkov invited Dutch people to check us
For us, migration is a huge issue, Ukraine and the support for it, how to approach what is happening between the Israelis and the Palestinians – all these are problems of extreme importance for Bulgaria. This was stated by Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov before the two-day meeting of the leaders of the EU member states in Brussels on Thursday. He announced that the focus should be on protecting the external borders, working with third countries so that illegal migrants can return, and from this point of view Bulgaria and Romania will be much more effective inside Schengen.
The Prime Minister added that the EC is expected to send a letter to the Netherlands with an invitation for a mission to Bulgaria in connection with our acceptance into Schengen.
“We are not counting on these two days to convince the Netherlands that we are ready for Schengen, but we have made very significant progress on protecting the border in recent months, and all of this is being accounted for. Diplomacy must also do its job – we rely on the support of other countries as well”, said the Prime Minister. Against this background, his Dutch colleague Mark Rutte announced that he expects in December the opinion of the EC, which must determine whether Sofia is ready for Schengen. “I know you are working hard, but first let’s see what the committee will say. The procedure must be strict and fair, without any concessions. We expect the Commission to announce whether Bulgaria fulfills all the criteria and to be honest, i.e. if you are ready – to say “yes”, if you are not – to say “no”, the Dutch Prime Minister also indicated.
On the occasion of the criticism of Foreign Minister Maria Gabriel for not working enough on the subject of “Schengen”, Denkov commented as follows: “I think that her efforts and mine and those of the other participants complement each other, we must all support each other to overcome them the obstacles”.
“You have our full support for Schengen. All the conditions for acceptance into the Schengen area have been fulfilled”, the Vice-President of the European Commission, Vera Jourova, told Nikolay Denkov in Brussels. She recalled that the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, advocates the same position.
In Brussels, Denkov also met with representatives of the organization “Reporters Without Borders”. In front of her, he commented that the Bulgarian media have no problem with free expression, as exceptional progress has been reported in this regard in the last 2 years. The main threat to the media at the moment is disinformation, the prime minister explained. According to him, standards should be imposed to check the truth of the facts. This had to happen through changes in the Bulgarian legislation, but regulations at the European level would also help.
The Prime Minister also expressed a position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. According to him, Israel has the right to defend itself, but it must protect innocent people as much as possible. The Palestinians had the same commitment to civilians, he said.
“Unity” is the word with which the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, summed up all the topics put before the leaders of the EU member states.
From the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine to migration policy to the EU’s almost depleted budget, the bloc’s position has become unclear in recent weeks and mixed messages have begun to be heard, particularly regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. After days of disagreement, EU leaders have set themselves the goal of reuniting around a common position.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán also emphasized the fact that migration policy, which has not made progress in the EU for years, will play a significant role in world conflicts. “From a European perspective and from a Hungarian perspective, stability in both Israel and Egypt is crucial. If they are unstable, migration flows will immediately come to Europe,” concluded Orbán. However, he does not support additional funding for countries struggling with migration.
2023-10-26 18:30:00
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