BULGARIA should join the European Union on the scheduled date of January 1 2007, as long as it continues to speed up reforms, Ivailo Kalfin, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, told a news conference on January 31, the BTA news agency reported.

Kalfin, together with Meglena Kouneva, Minister of European Integration, attended the 11th meeting of the Bulgaria-EU Association Council (BEUAC) held in Brussels the same day.

Kalfin said that he had received EU support for Bulgaria’s accession on the planned date, but in return the union expected clear signals and concrete results in the fight against organised crime and high-level corruption, including amendments to the Bulgarian constitution and the abolition of MPs’ immunity.

BEUAC reviewed Bulgaria’s preparations for accession to the EU in the light of a monitoring report on Bulgaria’s readiness to join the union, which the European Commission published in October 2005.

In a media statement after the meeting, BEUAC said: “The EU reiterates its willingness to assist Bulgaria in attaining the objective of joining the union on January 1 2007”.
In this context, the BEUAC congratulated Bulgaria on the progress already made in its preparations for membership, and encouraged the country to make further and continuous efforts to find solutions to outstanding issues in the limited time remaining.

However, Bulgaria also received criticism.

Hans Winkler - leader of the EU delegation at BEUAC and state secretary at the Austrian foreign ministry, where he holds official responsibilities concerning the current Austrian EU presidency - said that crime and corruption were the two areas that might bring into question Bulgaria’s EU membership.

Winkler said the Association Council acknowledged that Bulgaria had made considerable progress in three of a total of five policy areas in which the EC October 2005 report was most critical towards the country. Winkler categorised those two issues as the only potential stumbling blocks on the country’s way into the EU.

“We all are aware,” Winkler said, “that these changes cannot be made overnight, but we would like to see concrete results, clear signals, not just 10 or 15 arrests - although this would be an important result, too - but rather, irreversible changes in the fight against crime and corruption.”

Winkler, however, did recognise Bulgaria’s advancement in justice legislation, including the adoption of a new Criminal Procedure Code, and proposed amendments to the Judiciary Act. Among the reform areas where further efforts are needed, Winkler identified enhancement of administrative capacity and improved coordination at the local level in order to ensure the effective absorption of EU structural funds.

“National reforms had to be smoothly and appropriately implemented by adopting necessary regulations and adequate personnel and financing policies to fulfill the tasks and functions prescribed by law,” Winkler said.

He called for enhancing the accountability, transparency and efficiency of the legislative system.

“The fight against corruption, including corruption in the upper corridors of power, is essential for Bulgaria,” he said.

The overall opinion of the EU representatives was that Bulgaria has achieved a fine level of approximating its legislation to EU law, but would like to see further efforts to apply this legislation in areas relating to the functioning of the domestic market, common EU security and control of the external borders of the union.

Earlier the same day, Kalfin met with EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn to discuss the country’s progress in the principal domains drawing critical remarks from the EU. The judicial reform, again, topped the agenda of this session.

Rehn said the EU was concerned and will carefully monitor the expected constitutional amendments in Bulgaria, especially the desired abolishment of MPs’ immunity.
“This would show that Bulgaria really does not want to cover up corruption at the highest level and there is no going back on the issue of crime and corruption,” Rehn said.

The previous day, January 30, Kalfin, together with his Romanian counterpart Mihai Ungureanu, discussed a plan for possible participation of the two countries in future EU police missions in Kosovo. The EU plans to obtain control of all law-enforcement functions in Kosovo beginning 2007.

“If this proposal is passed, I think that Bulgaria’s participation in the mission is more than obligatory,” Kalfin told Bulgarian-language media after the meeting.

At present, Bulgaria participates in the UN police contingent in Kosovo.