Foreign mission to check Bulgaria’s readiness to join Schengen

A foreign mission is expected to arrive in Bulgaria in September to check the country's readiness to join the Schengen area, reads the transcript of the government’s regular meeting held on August 9. The information was published in the legal information system of the Council of Ministers.

During a discussion of an agenda item on the results of Bulgaria's participation in the informal meeting of EU Justice and Home Affairs Council, held in Spain on July 20, Bulgarian Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov reported on bilateral meetings with European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson and Dutch Minister for Migration Eric van der Burg. The talks focused on Bulgaria's road to Schengen. During the meetings, the Bulgarian side informed about its actions taken in terms of the implementation of the recommendations made by the European Commission in the Rule of Law Report, as well as the commitments made within the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Minister Stoyanov also informed that Commissioner Johansson has confirmed the Commission's support and has expressed her readiness to provide assistance in the talks with the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU, as well as with the two countries that expressed their opinion against Bulgaria's accession - the Netherlands and Austria.

Stoyanov quoted Van der Burg who has pointed out that there are expectations that the Dutch government will work on issues on the European agenda, including the issue of Schengen. "If sufficiently strong arguments are presented to Parliament, for which he [Van der Burg] personally expressed his readiness, that if he receives these arguments from us, he will personally submit them to Parliament, and there is a chance for reconsideration of the negative position on Bulgaria's Schengen accession," Stoyanov also said in his statement, the transcript further reads.

"In this regard, he [Van der Burg] expressed his willingness for a [foreign] mission. We also offered him this thing because last year, in October, when there was a delegation here, on the territory of Bulgaria, then the Netherlands did not send a representative, which was an indication that the Schengen accession would not happen. This time, at their request and at our insistence, they are prepared to make such a visit in September, which, of course, must be coordinated by the European Commission", Stoyanov added.

The Interior Minister said that the Bulgarian side is doing everything possible to receive the foreign mission by September 10 or September 15, at the latest.

At the government’s meeting, Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov has recommended to all responsible state institutions to prepare as well as possible for the forthcoming visit, noting that experts from the Netherlands and Austria, organized by the European Commission, could take part in it, the transcript also reads.