About: Bulgarie

EU’s free movement: Like the air that we breathe?

The exercise of the right to freedom of movement is not as evident as "the air that we breathe". EU citizens should be reminded of this, so they vote next May to firmly defend this crucial milestone in the European construction, António Vitorino and Yves Bertoncini write.

UKIP’s call to ban migrants is not just unrealistic, it is counter-productive

Nigel Farage’s statements calling for a ban on migrants coming to the UK is a setback for the debate on immigration - an issue that deserves thorough consideration, linking it to economic growth as well as social impact, says Sajjad Karim.

What Bulgaria expects for itself and the European Union in 2014

As populists gather more and more support in several EU countries, the responsibility of politicians is to limit those trends and establish a truly European debate ahead of the European elections, writes Kristian Vigenin in an exclusive op-ed he contributed to EURACTIV.

Open letter to David Cameron

The UK prime minister is amplifying nationalist speculation that the country's labour market is going to be under threat after labour restrictions for Bulgarian and Romanian citizens are lifted on 1 January, writes Ivailo Kafin MEP.

The case of Judge Todorova, or what is wrong with justice in Bulgaria

Judges in Bulgaria are sanctioned not when they commit a violation, but when they disobey, writes Ivanka Ivanova.

UK policy on Romanian, Bulgarian students is illegal

The policy of denying Bulgarian and Romanian students employment in Britain is unfair. But that’s not the real issue. The point is it is breaching EU law too, says Galina Kostadinova.

EU lobbying from a new EU member state perspective

While the new member states' generally small stature, relative poverty and inexperience limit their influence in the European Union, they are fast learning the game of Brussels lobbying, argues Gergana Passy.

‘Barroso’s girl’ runs for president of Bulgaria

EURACTIV's Senior Editor Georgi Gotev takes a look at former EU Commissioner Meglena Kuneva's decision to run in upcoming presidential elections in Bulgaria, arguing that her image as someone with experience and contacts in Brussels could give her a crucial edge.

Open letter to Barroso: Is the Commission shying away from its responsibilities on diploma recognition?

The European Commission is shying away from its responsibilities regarding the mutual recognition of university diplomas between EU member states, writes Prof. Dr. Vesselin Blagoev, vice-rector of International University College in Sofia, Bulgaria, in an open letter to European Commission President José Manuel Barroso. 

Gas security in Central and Eastern Europe: Connected, coordinated and consolidated

Central and Eastern European gas markets have long suffered from isolation and fragmentation, leaving them vulnerable to both supply disruptions and to monopoly pricing power. However, new research suggests that countries collectively negotiating with gas exporters could remedy this problem, argues economist and energy researcher Edward Hunter Christie.  

We believe in the European Union: a different kind of European Union

Conservative parties in Europe are instituting an agenda of austerity and xenophobia, verging on a new "tyranny of the majority" in Hungary, argue leaders of the Party of European Socialists and the social democratic parties of Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Poland.

‘Murder Bureau’: Department of Murders existed in Bulgaria

The Bulgarian state security services once had a top-secret special bureau responsible for the eradication, kidnapping or discrediting of Bulgarian émigrés around the world, alleges investigative journalist Alexenia Dimitrova of daily newspaper 24 Hours in an exclusive commentary for EURACTIV. 

Progress in Russian-Bulgarian gas negotiations

Russia and Bulgaria have established a framework of agreements regarding the Bulgarian section of the South Stream gas pipeline and new gas contracts. But the negotiation process is still far from over, write Ewa Paszyc and Tomasz D?borowski for Polish think-tank the Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW) in a July commentary.

The left and right wing in Bulgaria

In Bulgarian politics, the right-wing has traditionally been Western-oriented and the left pro-Russian. Yet since the country's entry into the EU the differences between left and right have decreased and more pragmatic policies are being pursued, writes Bulgarian MEP Emil Stoyanov (European People's Party) in an exclusive commentary for EURACTIV.

Burgas-Alexandroupolis: A project of strategic importance for Bulgaria and the EU

''The Burgas–Alexandroupolis oil pipeline, which according to plans will be fully operational in 2014, is one of the most strategically important projects for the EU's energy policy. Its construction will lead to the creation of a new, reliable and environmentally safe route for transportation and supply of crude oil to European markets, thus strengthening European energy security'', writes Plamen Rusev, director of the Bulgarian branch of the Trans-Balkan Pipeline (TBP).

Bulgaria needs wind electricity

"By 2020, wind energy could be generating between 13.5% and 15% of Bulgaria's electricity needs" and ensure that the country is no longer dependent on gas, writes Christian Kjaer, CEO of the European Wind Energy Association.

Jobs boom in Bulgaria leaves Roma behind

If no investment is made to mobilise the economic potential of Europe's largest minority - the Roma - they will remain in a "poverty trap", while Bulgarian economic growth is threatened by a lack of workers, writes Nikoleta Popokostadinova for the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network.

After the accession of Bulgaria and Romania: ending the contradiction between widening and deepening

This Fondation Robert Schuman policy paper argues that enlargement contributes to further integration by allowing the EU to play a greater role on the international scene.

Analysis: Bulgaria and Romania’s accession to the EU – Postponement, safeguards and the rule of law

The accession stories of Bulgaria and Romania are an excellent illustration of the EU being caught unawares when making important (legal and political) commitments to two future members while taking in good faith the commitments pledged by the same members-to-be, writes Gergana Noutcheva of the Centre for European Policy Studies.

Analysis: Does the accession date of Bulgaria and Romania really matter?

According to David Král publishing in Europeum, the question is what the stakes of acceding either in 2007 and 2008 are for both the EU and Bulgaria and Romania.

Analysis: Romania and Bulgaria clearing hurdles for EU accession

This analysis by Deutsche Bank Research looks at the two Balkan countries' preparation for membership of the EU from an economic perspective.

Bulgaria: The referee blows his whistle

Bulgaria has been shown numerous yellow and red cards by the European Commission. Will it remain on the bench until 2008, queries Yana Buhrer Tavanier in Transitions Online.

Bulgaria: Massive attack

The rise of nationalism in Bulgaria is the outcome of long-ignored problems that may now threaten inter-ethnic relations, writes Yana Buhrer Tavanier in Transitions Online.

Bulgarian elections: Keeping attack at bay

The left does well, the right crumbles, and a new nationalist force comes out of nowhere in Bulgarian elections, writes Polia Alexandrova in Transitions Online.