Republics

Miscalculations involving the fence which is to be constructed along the Bulgarian-Turkish border are worth around BGN 4 M.

Bulgaria's Defense Ministry has written up the total sum, thus increasing it from BGN 5.1 M to BGN 9.664 M.

Bulgaria's film community has issued a declaration calling for an immediate increase by BGN 6 220 000 of the state aid for the film industry.

According to local filmmakers, the increase in the budget for the sector will make it possible for Bulgarian cinema to achieve sustainable development and to contribute to the country's economic growth.

BELGRADE - EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton congratulated on Monday the Serbian people on the successful electoral process and announced that she would visit Belgrade soon.

I congratulate the people of Serbia on the elections, Ashton told a news conference after a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council on Monday.

Kosovo key condition for Germany

BERLIN -- Foreign policy spokesman for the ruling German CDU/ CSU Philipp Missfelder has said that "the right way for Serbia is toward the EU."

Missfelder commented on parliamentary elections to say the SNS victory was "a significant step forward for Serbia, that has many challenges ahead."

Crimea, Kosovo, and double standards

BELGRADE -- The French daily Le Figaro has an article comparing reactions in western countries and their media to declarations of independence made by Crimea and Kosovo.

The conclusion the newspaper made is that "officials are applying double standards," while the media tend to "forget."

Greece has scored poorly in the European Justice scorecard, which measures the efficiency, quality and independence of justice and was published on Monday.

According to the report, which used 2012 data, found that the Greek justice system’s performance had worsened.

Bulgaria is last but one in the European Union by citizens' trust in the independence of the judiciary, according to the 2014 EU Justice Scoreboard.

Bulgaria will implement a broadband network project worth BGN 39.1M by September 2014, Transport Minister Danai Papazov pledged.

Once the infrastructure is ready, the current internet speed will increase from 30 mb/s to 100mb/s, Standart News reports.

Bulgaria's Government is considering the introduction of mandatory inscriptions in Bulgarian on the packaging of imported goods. 

Currently the labels and instruction manuals in Bulgarian are also mandatory, but some of the goods have additional Bulgarian labels, pasted on the package.

Three new water reservoirs will be built on Bulgarian territory before 2017, Finance Minister Petar Chobanov announced on Monday.

It is estimated that construction will be worth BGN 147 M, Bulgarian website Standart News has reported, citing Minister of Regional Development Desislava Terzieva.