Bulgaria could accept up to two Guantanamo detainees, Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov was quoted as saying by Bulgarian National Television (BNT) on December 16 2009.

The latest development follows a special meeting held by Parliament’s committee on internal security, public order and foreign policy to discuss a written request from US special envoy Daniel Fried. The letter, sent by Fried to Prime Minister Boiko Borissov on December 7, asked the Bulgarian government to consider resettling detainees from Cuba's Guantanamo Bay centre.

Reportedly, a task force will be formed under Borissov's orders to assess and evaluate the US request for Bulgaria to accept detainees allegedly linked to Al Qaeda. According to BNT, before the Bulgarian government can confirm any resettlement, "everything about the detainees' status must be made available". Only then will the Government be able to decide.

The task force will comprise Interior Ministry personnel, as well as members of Bulgaria's Foreign Affairs Ministry, Ministry of Finance, Judicial Ministry, and the State Agency for National Security (SANS).

"Their status is as detainees but no official charges were ever raised against them," Tsvetanov was quoted as saying by BNT.

According to the Deputy Foreign Minister, when it comes to a decision on resettlement, it will be decided at the discretion of Bulgaria alone. In the end, it is crucial that should the Government accept the US's resettlement request, the matter should not be over-dramatised because since the turn of 2009, more than 900 illegal immigrants have arrived in Bulgaria, of unknown background and intentions.

The Government will be entrusted with the final decision, although Parliament will be informed about every step, Tsvetanov told BNT.

The US asked Bulgaria to consider receiving a detainee from Guantanamo Bay after the camp's closure, Bulgaria media said on December 11 2009. According to Bulgarian media reports, the US envoy had requested that the Government give the green light for the resettlement of one detainee in particular.
 
The European Union and the US endorsed a joint statement spelling the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility on June 15 2009, which subsequently raised the issue of the future status of its 240 current detainees.

Although most detainees are eligible for resettlement, the prospect of accepting them has triggered unease across the European Union. So far, only the UK, France, Italy, Portugal, Spain and, Belgium have indicated willingness to do so.