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Sat, May 26 2012
Bulgaria backs Serbia's EU bid, unlikely to change stance on Kosovo - ambassador
Photo: АСЕН ТОНЕВ
Bulgaria will continue to support Serbia's bid to join the European Union, but was unlikely to withdraw its recognition of the independence of Kosovo, Sofia's top diplomat in Belgrade said in an interview with radio Deutsche Welle's Serbian service, published on January 2.
"Membership in the EU means that the country is stable, progressive and predictable and such a Serbia is in Bulgaria's interest, so we will support Serbia's drive to become closer with the EU," ambassador Georgi Dimitrov was quoted as saying.
"It is the individual work of every country and includes numerous steps. Bulgaria's accession took 12 years from the moment that the accession request was made and I do not think that the average accession period is less than 10 years," he said.
However, the issue of Kosovo had to be treated separately, nor should it be allowed to have an impact on Serbia's accession drive, Dimitrov said. Bulgaria recognised Kosovo on March 20 2008, two months after the province unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia on February 17 2008.
In December 2009, Bulgaria testified on Kosovo's behalf at the hearings held by the International Court of Justice in The Hague, prompting an angry response from politicians in Belgrade.
"Bulgaria's position will depend on the court's ruling. It must be understood that an existing position on the issue of recognising independence would be very difficult to change," Dimitrov was quoted as saying.
"Membership in the EU means that the country is stable, progressive and predictable and such a Serbia is in Bulgaria's interest, so we will support Serbia's drive to become closer with the EU," ambassador Georgi Dimitrov was quoted as saying.
"It is the individual work of every country and includes numerous steps. Bulgaria's accession took 12 years from the moment that the accession request was made and I do not think that the average accession period is less than 10 years," he said.
However, the issue of Kosovo had to be treated separately, nor should it be allowed to have an impact on Serbia's accession drive, Dimitrov said. Bulgaria recognised Kosovo on March 20 2008, two months after the province unilaterally declared its independence from Serbia on February 17 2008.
In December 2009, Bulgaria testified on Kosovo's behalf at the hearings held by the International Court of Justice in The Hague, prompting an angry response from politicians in Belgrade.
"Bulgaria's position will depend on the court's ruling. It must be understood that an existing position on the issue of recognising independence would be very difficult to change," Dimitrov was quoted as saying.
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The Republic of Macedonia shall be reunited and subdue the balkans in the wake of the economical crisis. Glory to Alexander and Philip!
Fair point, Ludvig - clearly your upbringing made you something of a polyglot (that's actually meant to be a compliment !)
I can't resist commenting on your accurate comment about the Taliban:
<< Anyway, this chap had nothing else to do, but he would walk around the town and check the turbans. If your turban was a little out of the vertical, he would write you a citation >>
I think here we are a bit "divided by a common language". In my neck-of-the-woods a "citation" is a [...]
Read the full comment commendation to the authorities for some kind of honour like an OBE or something (actually, when I was in the civil service I used to write them, and not for nothing was the OBE nicknamed "Other B*gg*rs Efforts).
In your neck-of-the-woods a "citation" is clearly something a little less pleasant, unless the Taliban have adopted the British "honours system", which somehow I doubt. Presumably we would refer to it as a "summons" or an "arrest warrant" ?
Hopefully it didn't mean stoning-to-death, anyway. That is presumably reserved by the Taliban for women.....
Serbians took Macedonia and Pomoravie from Bulgaria. We will never forget this.
I like you. You are persistent. When you're knocked down, you get up and try again. BTW persist ency is the difference between a success and failure. You also remind me of a Taliban position that existing in Afghanistan before we invaded the country. It was called a "religious police". I am not joking, this is a true story. Anyway, this chap had nothing else to do, but he would walk around the town and check the turbans. If your turban was a little out of the vertical, he would write you a citation.
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Read the full comment
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I do not know about you, but for me this is a free vent-time, not a job research or dating game, where I come to impress a dummy. I type as am thinking, it is coming to you straight from my heart. If I am patient enough I spellcheck it and sometimes I grab a crazy option. So when I read it on the board I see instead a "restraint" instead of "restaurant" etc.. I asked you before, change any error and misspelling, I would appreciate it.
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On the other hand, if you are trying to prove something with that, that would be childish, for the simple reason, I would be first to tell you - I'm not PERFECT. It is not easy to be perfect, but I do come - close. Because of my dad's job, we moved a lot. Thanks to that circumstances we moved a lot around. We would settle down, they would enroll me in school, I would just learn the local language to just to get bye in school/college, i would even find a girl that liked me, and we had to raise the tent and go. Because of that small fortune or misfortune, I speak (could get by in) all major World languages. As youngsters we would take a dictionary and check the # of words on random 10 pages and extrapolate, how many words we know in given language. So, I know say 200,000 English words, someplace that many Serbian words, 80,000 German words, 100,000 Spanish words, 50,000 French words, as many Russian words, about thousands Arabic are still left in the memory... Add to that my RL profession (specific field of applied science) ... and you'd get - a mess. To expect me to be perfect in each of these fields, it would be ridiculous. Yes?
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That is my case (challenge me and I prove it). Now, what about you? You said, you have a M.S. degree in what? Greek-Albanian literature?
Ludvig 'n' Peggy -
When you say about the Bulgarians :
<<My problem with Bulgaria is very much tied to the above article. You are a country of average people. You have never had great people. If you continue like this without a strong moral component, country's identity, you will continue to be a country of average people without a sole. >>
...does this mean that the Bulgarians have heels but no soles on their shoes ?
...or does this mean that what you [...]
Read the full comment are posting is a Right Load of Old Cobblers.... ?
I think we should be told.....
Ludvig, don't you realise that there are two sets of rules here.
One for them and one for us.
They will tell you to do as they say not as they do.
I applaud you on your patient way of arguing the facts. Soemtimes it's so difficult.
@alban.kcomment@gmail.com
This is one man's opinion, for what it's worth. As for Serbian (YU) collaboration with the occupiers, yes they were people like that, but they did not go too far. In both big World Wars, the mainstream Serbs were for FREEDOM. Accordingly they prevailed. The Bulgarian case was just the opposite. the entire country just folded the tent every step of the way.
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Now I read here in this site news articles, Bulgaria is complaining against the Turks for atrocities committed in 1912, [...]
Read the full comment trying to stop them from joining EU! And what about the Turkish occupation in 1390s? You are complaining now, 100 years later? What were you doing then? That was my point, when I say - it's a nice country, our brother country, but the country of average people, who tolerate occupation very well. In the case of Kosovo, the Bulgar government in its long tradition style, you go to FORFRONT to argue for the military might and occupation
Hi Valeri.
My problem with Bulgaria is very much tied to the above article. You are a country of average people. You have never had great people. If you continue like this without a strong moral component, country's identity, you will continue to be a country of average people without a sole. That means - you are very good at bowing. The mighty Turks come, you bow. The imperialist Austrohungars come, again you bow, genocidal Nazi Germans come, you are with them. Red commy Russians come, you are in forfront... America the sole superpower gives you [...]
Read the full comment orders to gun for Kosovo in ICJ, you oblige, NATO could not have submitted better argument for legalization of illegal bombing.... Now your ambasador says, we'll wait till the court gives its opinion, then we'll see. Do you really need a court to explain to you that NATO cannot unilaterally bomb a little country for two months with DU and cluster bombs, day and night, cut off electricity and water to 2 million Belgrade inhabitants threatening to eliminate them all like rats if the Serbian government does not give them Kosovo for military base (and "independent Kosovu")?
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Having said all that, I still see hope for Bulgaria, if they are willing to reconsider their undignified stand against close, Slavic neighbor. You could always have a fresh start.
Very sensible stand.
I actually don't see BG vetoing anyone's EU membership, including that of FYROM - it simply would be against our interests. BG may push for minority rights conditions but will not veto.
Infrastructual and business isolation has been BGs biggest problem since '89 - probably the reason for every tragedy, including the criminality in the 90s.
BG has been remarkably consistant in attempting to change that, regardless of governments, for her to start vetoing inclusions at this point.