Schengen Area

Admitting Bulgaria into the EU's borderless Schengen zone is a legal problem rather than a political one, according to European Parliament President Martin Schulz.

Speaking at a joint news conference with Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov in Brussels on Thursday, Schulz said that when EU member states meet certain criteria, they become entitled to certain legal rights.

European socialists' leader Sergey Stanishev has announced he is ready to work with Bulgarian institutions toward Bulgaria's accession into the Schengen area without border control.

Bulgaria's Justice Minister Hristo Ivanov expects a negative annual report on justice and internal affairs of the European Commission on Bulgaria.

Ivanov told the BNT public broadcaster breakfast show, that most likely the EC will conclude that Bulgaria "has lost direction in the judiciary reform and loses the trust of its international partners."

The European Commission is intending to continue the monitoring reports prepared about Bulgaria and Romania, issuing a single document on a yearly basis, a spokesperson for the Commission has said.

At the same time no specific date has yet been set for the reports on both countries to be published, the Bulgarian National Radio quoted spokeswoman Mina Andreeva as saying.

Bulgaria has a clear economic and political interest in joining the Schengen Area and the accession in stages will be among the key goals of the government, according to Meglena Kuneva, Deputy Prime Minister for European Policy and Institutional Matters.

Deputy Prime Minister for European Policy and Institutional Matters Meglena Kuneva has told Romania's Ambassador to Bulgaria Anton Pacuretu that the accession to the Schengen area is an achievable target for both countries.

Romania's chamber of deputies on Monday gave its approval for prosecutors to open a criminal investigation into Valerian Vreme, a parliamentarian suspected of money laundering, abuse of office and bribery in relation to software licences for schools.

Romanian Foreign Affairs Minister Titus Corlatean spoke at the Annual Meeting of the Romanian Diplomacy on Wednesday about the objectives of the Romanian diplomacy in the period ahead and stressed that the relation with the United States remains the 'cornerstone' of the Romanian foreign policy.

Serbian media sources reported on Wednesday that 22,500 Serbian citizens applied for asylum in EU countries in 2013 a 17-per-cent increase on the figure for 2012.

Ivan Gerginov, Serbia’s assistant commissioner for refugees and migration, said the hike would not affect Serbia’s visa-free regime with the EU Schengen area.

Italy's Ambassador to Bulgaria Marco Conticelli has vowed support for the Schengen bids of Bulgaria and Romania during Italy's Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Italy holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union in the period July-December 2014.