PRIME Minister Sergei Stanishev's first trip abroad since taking office was to Brussels, where he said that he was "moderately optimistic" regarding Bulgaria's accession to the European Union (EU) in 2007.

Stanishev was warned in Brussels that if the country did not make up for its delays in the next 16 months, the European Commission would not allow Bulgaria into the EU on January 1 2007, the scheduled date of accession. 

Stanishev was also reassured of the Commission's support for the new Government and new Bulgarian parliamentary majority coalition.
The Bulgarian delegation which accompanied Stanishev, which included Foreign Minister Ivailo Kalfin and Minister of European Integration Meglena Kouneva, was assured that the EC was raising, at every meeting with Libyan leaders, the issue of the Bulgarian medics who had been sentenced to death in Libya.

Stanishev described as "extremely important" his meeting with the European Commissioner on enterprise and industry, Guenter Verheugen.

"We stated the Government's and Parliament's political will," Stanishev said after his meeting with Verheugen. "We expect the EU and its members to honour the treaty so we can join the EU in 2007."

Stanishev said that he was confident that Bulgaria would manage to make up for the delays in some areas.

"There is no doubt that Bulgaria will make the necessary efforts," Verheugen told the government delegation. He said that he had no worries that Bulgaria would not complete the reforms.  

He said that Bulgaria's efforts 16 months before its accession date were comparable to those of the 10 countries which joined last year.
"In some respects we are even better off than the newly acceded East European countries were at this point," Kouneva said.

"The Government coalition exudes stability," Stanishev said. "I emphasised at the meeting that this is the governing coalition with the largest majority in Parliament in the past 15 years."

Foreign Minister Kalfin said that Bulgaria had a stable majority with a strong will to complete the reforms on time.

"Similarly to the 10 countries which joined the EU last year, we expect an objective assessment by the European Commission," Kalfin said.

The delegation also met with Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, Commissioner for Taxation and Customs Union Laszlo Kovacs and Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs.

During his meeting with Stanishev, Barroso said that the time for reforms was running out if Bulgaria wanted to join the EU in 2007.
Barroso also said that passing new legislation was not enough but that the establishment of an administration for its enforcement was also important.

"Haste is needed and I told this to the Prime Minister," Barroso said in an interview with the Reuters news agency. "We really want Bulgaria to become an EU member as soon as possible, but time is running out."

In addition to Bulgaria's EU membership, the subjects for discussion included European Commission relief aid for the victims of recent floods in Bulgaria.

In Sofia, Interior Minister Roumen Petkov met with Bridget Czarnota, head of the department on Bulgaria in the Enlargement Directorate of the EC.

At the meeting, Petkov outlined the ministry's priorities in the context of Bulgaria's preparation for EU membership as of January 1 2007 and said that there would be continuing innovations of the institution's operations. 

"Bulgaria will continue to observe strictly its commitments assumed under the justice and home affairs chapter during the accession negotiations with the EU," the press release of the Interior Ministry said.

According to Petkov, the ministry's key tasks include a new law on the Interior Ministry, completing reforms at the Ministry and the further training of police investigators with a view to the adoption of a new Penal Code. They also include combating corruption, countering terrorism, exercising adequate border control and management and applying a strategy to bring police closer to the public.