and Bulgaria blocked from joining Schengen zone
Bulgaria says it will try to allay other nations' concerns Continue reading the main story
EU harmonises Schengen visa rules
Balkan states' travel to EU eased
France and Germany have decided to block Bulgaria and Romania from joining the Europe's passport-free travel zone.

The French and German interior ministers said it was "
premature"
to let them join Schengen in March 2011.

They said Bulgaria and Romania needed to make "
irreversible progress"
in the fight against corruption and organised crime.

Romania condemned the decision, while Bulgaria promised to "
do its utmost"
to remove doubts about its membership.

French Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux and his German counterpart, Thomas de Maiziere, raised their objections in a letter to European Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem, AFP news agency reported.

Experts from EU states who visited Romania and Bulgaria are due to present a report in January that will be used by governments to make a decision on Romanian and Bulgarian membership, but it must be agreed by the Schengen members in unanimity.

"
Grave consequences"


A spokesman for Germany's interior ministry said there had also been a lack of progress by Romania and Bulgaria in reforming their judiciary, Associated Press news agency reported.

The spokesman said those deficits could have "
grave consequences for the European Union's security"
and raised concerns about an "
overly swift"
adhesion to the Schengen area.

Romanian President Traian Basescu said: "
I believe that the Franco-German letter sent to the European Commission is an act of discrimination against Romania."


Bulgarian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Vessela Tcherneva told AFP: "
We are aware that the political situation in some EU member countries is complicated. For that reason, we will do our utmost to remove any doubts, including in the areas of the judicial system and society as a whole."

The Schengen zone is made up of 25 European countries - the 27 EU members, minus the UK, Ireland, Bulgaria, Romania and Cyprus;
plus three non-EU nations - Norway, Iceland and Switzerland.

Sorry to sound uneducated but I don't understand this thing about the Schengen Zone ? what is it? and is there really any need for it? plus what are the advantages to anyone living in Bulgaria

Blink wrote:

Sorry to sound uneducated but I don't understand this thing about the Schengen Zone ? what is it? and is there really any need for it? plus what are the advantages to anyone living in Bulgaria

Good day Blink, hope the following information helps

Bulgaria, Romania Suffers EU Open Borders Blow
Post subject: Bulgaria will not join schengen next year

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Thanks for the link Brian I will have a read and see if its any clearer to me

I am sure the EU dream up these wonderful words so that us mere minions don't know what they are talking about, this is an attempt by them to make us think that they have a higher IQ than us and are capable of talking about things that we have no knowledge.
:: :: ::

Click on here itchyfeet, it might help
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willowsend

Thanks willowsend - I am a much wiser person now!!!

It's sad indeed, as the requirements change in the last minute or new are put. The same feeling have Croatia and espacially Turkey, as EU negotiate with the latter for more that 50 years with no entry in sight. I dont think that EU is honest in its actions

Zuzi wrote:

It's sad indeed, as the requirements change in the last minute or new are put. The same feeling have Croatia and espacially Turkey, as EU negotiate with the latter for more that 50 years with no entry in sight. I dont think that EU is honest in its actions

There is the little business of Cyprus to be sorted out and Greece will continue to resist Turkey joining the EU all the time this issue is unresolved.

Can someone explain to me in simple English what the advantage is of Bulgaria joining the Schengen Zone please

I found this on the google search for organised crime
Thursday 23rd of December 2010 Schengen to be off limits for Bulgaria and Romania

Loading ... Posted on: December 23rd, 2010 by Andy Simpson
The EU’s borderless Schengen travel zone will be off limits for Bulgaria and Romania due to fears of infiltration by organised crime from the two countries.

The two Eastern European states had hoped to be allowed to join the Schengen zone next March, thus allowing free movement between 25 European countries for their citizens. However, an approach to the European Commissioners by Germany and France has urged indefinite exclusion of both countries due to their failure to deal with organised crime and corruption since their entry into the EU in 2007.

Both Bulgaria and Romania have been heavily criticised by the European Commission on numerous occasions for their failure to act on the problems, raising concerns about their lack of ability to cope with drug- and people-smuggling gangs.
There are fears that, if they are allowed to join the Schengen zone, organised crime in the two sectors would flood across the open borders.

Fears also exist that illegal migrants from outside the European Union would cross into Bulgaria and Romania in order to gain easy access to mainland western Europe. Neither Ireland nor the UK are in the Schengen zone, so would not be affected.
In a letter to the Commission, the interior ministers of Germany and France urged admission to the zone be postponed until it could be proven the two countries had strengthened their public and judiciary services to combat all abuses.

However, Romanian president Traian Basescu is unhappy about any attempt to delay his country’s entry to the zone. He states Romania will not be discriminated against and must be granted the same conditions as the other EU states, adding that including new conditions contravenes EU laws and creates an unacceptable precedent.

The Bulgarian Interior Minister, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, said he intended to press ahead with preparations for joining the zone. Since Schengen’s expansion to include a number of Northern European countries such as Poland, Latvia and Lithuania, tens of thousands of illegal immigrants have slipped into western Europe, many of whom were from Chechnya and even Vietnam and India.

Yes, Daizy, there are certain advantages as far as I know, for common people, not so much, they will not ask to show passport in Schengen countries, it's not so big problem anyway, as this is a formality even now. The real advantage is that BG police will have access to Schengen database and will be easier to combat organized crime. Also will strenghten border secutity and customs. Ande of course for politicians here is matter of prestige.

I am begining to see it all now but I think it would be better in some respects if Bulgaria never joined this even though it may help them sort out the organized crime it will still leave it open for others to travel and do what they want without even being noticed

[size=150:2et8mm8v]Bulgaria shouldn’t be so eager to join Schengen

France's Ambassador in Sofia Philippe Autie


France and Germany have cooled down Bulgaria’s enthusiasm to join Schengen. Just a few days before Christmas, France’s interior minister Brice Hortefeux and his German colleague Thomas de Maiziere wrote a letter to EU Home Affairs Commissioner Cecilia Malmstrom, in which they define Bulgaria’s and Romania’s Schengen accession scheduled for March 2011 as premature, owing to the two countries’ lag in corruption and organized crime combat. Here is the opinion of H. E. Philippe Autie, Ambassador of France to Bulgaria. .
France deems that Bulgaria is naturally bound to join the Schengen area, and the country has made some serious efforts in this direction. The work of Bulgaria’s interior minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov and his team is highly appreciated by his European partners who take into consideration the technical, human, financial and organizational investments that the Cabinet has made to tighten Bulgaria’s border control. In addition, I am glad that the interior, justice and finance ministries of our two countries have been cooperating so well to combat organized crime in the entire EU.
Schengen zone is currently under the constant and growing pressure of a migration flow onto its outer borders. Three-fourths of the illegal immigrants into the European Union pass through Southeastern Europe, in particular through the Greek-Turkish border not far away from Bulgaria.
Acceding to Schengen Bulgaria will obviously become one of the targets of illegal immigrants. It is to Bulgaria’s own interest to be well prepared for this, a too early accession to Schengen zone would be a risk to the country. In such a context the corruption and organized crime are too high a risk.
Undoubtedly, the Bulgarian institutions will cope with these challenges inherited from the previous government. It is impossible to deal with them overnight. The determination shown by Mr Borissov and his team is welcome by their European partners and the European Commission. In particular, my advice would be to have a judicial system functioning in such a way as to be capable of effectively standing against corruption and organized crime.
The security of Schengen zone is not a bilateral French-Bulgarian issue, it is equally important to the whole EU community and, to a great extent, to the Bulgarian citizens. Opinion Bulgaria shouldn’t be so eager to join Schengen ::
France's Ambassador in Sofia Philippe AutieSanta Will Get Bulgarian Business Going

Bulgaria’s Socialists Wish for Cabinet Change in 2011
Domestic | December 27, 2010, Monday

Socialist leader and former Prime Minister, Sergey Stanishev, said he wished for a change of cabinet in 2011. Photo by BGNES The cabinet of Boyko Borisov failed the most in the economic and budgetary spheres, according to the leader of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), Sergey Stanishev.

The BSP leader said Monday that the current government made three major blunders in 2010.

As blunder number one, Stanishev assessed the actions of the Bulgarian Interior Minister, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, related to “wiretapping and police brutality.”

The second blunder, according to the socialist leader, was the nomination of Rumiana Jeleva for the Bulgarian EU Commissioner, who was “personally nominated by the PM Boyko Borisov,” in Stanishev’s words.

He said that the third blunder was “another nomination of Borisov” – Kalina Ilieva, the former head of the Bulgarian Agriculture Fund, who was revealed to have forged her diploma from the Berlin Technical Institute.

According to BSP, the cabinet suffered most criticism in the economic and social sphere and the delay of Bulgaria’s entry to the Schengen Area was an indication of failure in the fight against organized crime and corruption.

“The people who are Borisov’ friends, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the French President Nicolas Sarkozy, demanded a delay in Bulgaria’s entry date to the Schengen Area, and they had strong arguments, like organized crime and corruption,” Stanishev said.

He defined 2010 as the year of sinking into the economic crisis, poverty, scandals and police brutality.

“While the ruling party GERB was getting richer, the ordinary Bulgarians were getting poorer,” Stanishev said.

However, he also noted positive achievements in the GERB governance. He assessed as “humble beginning” the replacement of four ministers.

“We wish that next year the whole cabinet would be gone,” Stanishev said.

The BSP leader pointed out that his party could submit another no-confidence vote against the government, triggered by the actions of the Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov and the government’s attitude towards the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences and the cinema industry in the country.

Stanishev also said that the goal of BSP for 2011 is to show that they are a specific political alternative to the ruling party GERB

ONLY THREE BLUNDERS<
they are having a laugh arn't they, or is that just wishfull thinking