BULGARIA CANNOT SAVE THE EU - NO ONE CAN WITHOUT A COMMON SOLUTION FOR ALL BORDERS

Bulgarian diplomacy should strive to convey the message that Bulgaria's and Romania's membership in Schengen will make Europe's borders even more secure, while non-admission hinders our common security. If we were to become members of the Schengen area, there would be no obstacle to foreign armed forces joining in and resources, including those of Frontex, being directed to the border, which would be much better protected. Bulgaria cannot save the EU. No one can if there is no common solution for all borders. This is what Dobri Mitrev, President of the Board of BIA, said for Bloomberg TV Bulgaria.

"Europe's big problem is that it is in dire need of leaders. It was not conceived as a union in which countries would interfere with each other, lawsuits would be fought between allies because it became clear that Romanian politicians are ready for such acts. It was created as an alliance of like-minded, responsible societies between which talks, dialogue, are the way to solve common problems. The 26 million people who live in Bulgaria and Romania have been unjustly deprived of access to the European single market for a decade. The losses for businesses and for people amount to billions. If we want to move forward together, we need to move forward in synergy, not one closing in and just peering out. Good neighbours don't do that."

Such a thing could not have happened at the time when there were leaders like German Chancellor Helmut Kohl and French President Francois Mitterrand, Mitrev was adamant. "This is very sad. If we want to change the attitude towards our country, we have to be extremely consistent and insistent and stop with our complexes. Very often we have to seek Bulgaria's assistance on various issues. We need to be able to be even-handed diplomats. When something is asked of us, we in turn put our own conditions".

Bulgaria's and Romania's desire for Schengen membership is long-standing and for 12 years now we have fully met all the technical criteria. What will hinder us at the moment, perhaps, is the political campaign before the elections, which is being waged in Austria, but this should not discourage us, Mitrev said. "Let them ask the Austrian and Dutch companies based in Bulgaria whether they think Bulgaria should become part of Schengen. They are strongly in favour of Bulgaria's entry".

Bulgarian diplomacy should work to be perceived not only as guarantors that there will be no unwanted migrant flow across our border, the interlocutor added. "Schengen must be seen, its enlargement must be seen as a common policy of Europe if we want this continent to be developed and leading. If we want it to be a locomotive to change for the better. The enlargement of Schengen is part of that."

The EU recognises that Bulgaria and Romania are examples of good work on their borders, but Bulgaria cannot save the EU and no one can if there is no common solution for all borders, Mitrev stressed.

"The truth is that we have a lot to do both in terms of the judiciary and in terms of securing our borders, especially with Turkey. We need to improve both physical and technical controls. But Europe must invest in all its borders if it wants to protect itself."