EURACTIV with BulgarianPresidency.eu Archives

Since her flight touched down in Sofia on 8 February, Ska Keller, co-President of the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament, became the target of Bulgarian nationalists.

The next European elections will take place in May 2019 and pressure is building to change the electoral law, which has been the same since European elections were held for the first time in 1976.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte poured cold water on Bulgaria’s ambition to unlock its stalled bid to join the EU border-free Schengen area on Tuesday (6 February) and said the country also needed more work to meet the criteria for joining the Eurozone.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov used the Brussels launch of the Bulgarian EU Presidency to criticise member states and EU diplomacy.

Bulgaria’s chief prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov ordered the tax authorities to inspect all Bulgarian citizens who have bought properties and cars for over €260,000 in the last two years.

At the very start of Bulgaria's EU presidency, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov’s ruling coalition was unexpectedly shaken by growing opposition to the government's plan to ratify the Council of Europe convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.

Germany welcomes a Bulgarian initiative to organise a European Commission-Turkey summit and the construction of a gas hub in Varna, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday (20 January) in Sofia, after talks with Bulgarian PM Boyko Borissov.

As Sofia prepares to host today (11 January) the official inauguration of the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the EU, Krassen Nikolov warns of one of the biggest problems in Bulgaria – air pollution.

Three grave crimes have cast a shadow over the start of the Bulgarian EU presidency and have highlighted the enormous deficiencies in the country's law enforcement, dating back to before it became a member of the EU.