Bulgaria was going to work hard to prove on January 1 2007 that it was ready for EU entry, European Integration Minister Meglena Kouneva told German politicians.

Kouneva visited the Bundestag to present the latest developments in the country before Germany launched the ratification procedure of Bulgaria's and Romania's accession treaty.

Bulgaria achieved good economic results shortly before its EU entry, Kouneva said. The 2006 budget surplus was expected to reach three per cent and the GDP growth rate reached 6.1 per cent in the first half of 2006.

Officials were working on transparency strategies and measures to counter corruption, Kouneva said.

German politicians asked Kouneva about border control, the work of the Bulgarian Prosecution and about the Bulgarian opinion on the European Constitution, a Foreign Ministry press release said.

The Bundestag would launch the accession treaty voting procedure on October 26. The document was examined for the first time on September 28 2006 in the German parliament.