Education Minister Daniel Vulchev will not be present at the meeting in a Sofia school on October 2 2007, offered by the teachers’ unions.

On October 1 2007, the unions sent the minister a letter requesting a meeting, Focus news agency said.

In a response, Vulchev sent an open letter, saying that “the Cabinet is ready for continuation of the negotiations without ultimatums and preliminary conditions.”

Vulchev asked the unions if they had the will for a dialogue without “ultimatums and preliminary conditions”, in which case the date and hour of the next round of negotiations could be set.

In response to accusations of “indifference towards the teachers’ protests” in the unions’ letter, Vulchev said his concerns were “best shown in actions, not in words.”