About: Bulgaria Archives

EXCLUSIVE: A deputy prime minister, a minister and a Bulgarian MEP are allegedly responsible for illegally selling Bulgarian passports to foreigners, according to claims made by a whistleblower who provided a bundle of documents that appeared to confirm the accusation.

EU and UK citizens will continue to enjoy visa-free travel across the Channel after Brexit, at least for short-term visits, if the draft Political Declaration on future relations made public on Thursday (22 November) is adopted by both sides.

The US has repeatedly taken position against Nord Stream 2, a Russia-sponsored pipeline planned to bring gas to Germany under the Baltic Sea. But this time Washington took position against another such pipeline, bringing Russian gas under the Black Sea.

The European Commission published on Tuesday (13 November) reports on Bulgaria and Romania under the so-called Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM), commending Bulgaria for progress made and lambasting Romania for backtracking. Both countries, however, were warned to uphold media freedom.

European Central Bank (ECB) will conduct a comprehensive assessment of six Bulgarian banks as part of the Balkan country's bid to join the European Union's banking union, Bulgaria's central bank said on Monday (12 November).

Bulgaria has become the sixth EU country after Hungary, Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic and Croatia to signal that it will not sign the global migration agreement at a ceremony in Morocco in December.

Bulgarian President Rumen Radev issued a stinging critique of the government's record on corruption and press freedom Friday (9 November), saying "the foundations of democracy are being threatened to a critical degree".

The Romania-Bulgaria Cross-Border (RBCB) Cooperation Programme supports the development of eligible border areas, both in Romania and Bulgaria for over 14 years. These programmes aim to create a "bridge" between the two countries in order to support the border regions.

European border regions matter and the EU must continue looking after them despite planned cuts for Cohesion policy funding, particularly as some of them remain under-developed, participants at a recent EURACTIV event said, highlighting the example of Romania-Bulgaria cross-border cooperation.

A Greek bank bought the Bulgarian subsidiary of another Greek bank on Wednesday (7 November). The deal seems totally at odds with the terms of Greece’s bailout deal, but not only that.

Bulgaria will take part in a joint bid to host the 2030 FIFA World Cup, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov announced on Friday (2 November), together with Serbia, Greece and Romania, a format dubbed by diplomats and journalists “the Orthodox Four”.

Bulgarian prosecutors said Monday (29 October) they have broken up a scam run by state officials which had enabled thousands of foreigners to obtain Bulgarian passports for cash -- and with them visa-free travel across the EU.

The publisher of two Bulgarian newspapers, Ivo Prokopiev, has asked that an international prosecutor or international observers get involved in the recently launched investigations involving his businesses, Bulgarian media reported on Monday (29 October).

Visas for visitors from Britain after Brexit? "Fake news!" insisted President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday (18 October), scoffing at the idea that France would ever impose such a demand on it neighbour.

Bulgaria could end up being marginalised if pro-EU parties achieve very good results in next May’s European Parliament elections, said Bulgarian MEP Svetoslav Malinov during a discussion about the upcoming poll.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said on Wednesday (10 October) the murder of journalist Viktoria Marinova was of purely criminal nature and lashed out against what he called “European pressure”, warning that he would raise the issue at the European People's Party (EPP).

A television journalist has been raped and murdered in Bulgaria's northern town of Ruse, prosecutors and a minister said Sunday (7 October), in a case that has shocked fellow journalists and sparked international condemnation.

When it comes to European structural funds, one of the main concerns is the capacity of the member states to attract them. Cooperation between public authorities has proven to be a driving factor.

Ahead of the European Week of Regions and Cities, the debate on Cohesion policy continues to spark tension inside the Brussels bubble as well as among stakeholders and networks of regions and cities across Europe.

Strahil Karapchanski, the deputy mayor of Ruse, the largest Bulgarian city on the Danube, told EURACTIV about the history, the present and his hopes for the future of cross-border regional cooperation with Romania, which he has helped to oversee.

Since 2014, the Romania-Bulgaria Interreg programme has helped to boost the economy on both sides of the border by promoting cross-border trade and boosting cooperation in tourism, agriculture and industry. EURACTIV spoke to a business representative of companies operating in the area.

The United States, Sweden and Italy have filed bids to supply Bulgaria with eight fighter jets aimed at replacing its ageing Soviet-designed MiG-29s, in a tender estimated at 1.8 billion levs (€900 million), the defence ministry said on Monday (1 October).

From Calarasi to Ruse, from Costanza to Veliko Tarnovo, EU Cohesion Policy has supported hundreds of actions and infrastructure investment in the fields of transport, science, education, youth employment, environment and support for small and medium-sized enterprises in Romania and Bulgaria.

While Brexit and the new EU priorities threaten to reduce the funds allocated for cross-border cooperation after 25 years, the Commission wants to improve Interreg with a new legal framework for cooperation between regions.