[size=-55]novinite 05 September 2010
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Bulgarian PM: We Got Useless Embassies

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has confirmed indirectly the reports about the closing of Bulgarian diplomatic missions abroad.

"
We currently have embassies that we really don't know why we have them. There are employees of the Foreign Ministry working outside Bulgaria who are there only to favor their private business, and have not anything for our country,"
Borisov declared in the village of Voyvodinovo near Plovdiv on Sunday when asked about the rumors of shutting dozens of embassies.

His indirect confirmation comes a day after Bulgarian Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenov said there will changes in the diplomatic corps including closures of missions because of budget restrictions. He did no specify, however, which embassies will be shut and when.

"
Our first job is to optimize our staff so as to make sure we have qualified people to help the Bulgarian citizens,"
Mladenov said.

In July 2010, media reports claimed the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry proposes the closing of 30 diplomatic missions abroad from a total of 111.

The Bulgarian missions in Ireland, Norway, Estonia, Latvia, Slovakia, Chile, Mexico, Morocco, Tunisia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, Angola, Zimbabwe, Yemen, Pakistan, Mongolia, North Korea, Thailand and Cambodia are reported to be among those slated for closure. During a "
second wave"
of closures, the Ministry will close the embassies in Venezuela, Cuba, Portugal and the Vatican on "
as needed basis"
along with the Consular Offices in Odessa, Novosibirsk and Yekaterinburg.

According to Vesela Cherneva, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson, the reports are untrue but the ministry is going ahead with a long-term restructuring plan.

Currently, Bulgaria has 83 embassies, 6 permanent representations, 20 consular offices, and 2 diplomatic bureaus around the world.