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The Week in Pictures Bulgaria President: We Have Strong Army Top Investigator: Much of Bulgaria's Capital Comes from Money Laundering Bulgaria Eco-Activists Protest in Brussels against Illegal Construction in Rila Stoichkov Receives Star on CSKA Alley of Fame Bulgaria Socialists Suggest Raising Health Insurance without Additional Fees Bulgaria's President: I Want to See CSKA in Champions League in 2009 Most Bulgarian Tourists Spent Recent Holidays Abroad Citizens of Bulgaria's Varna Protest against Destruction of Downtown Park

US and EU Experts to Help Bulgaria Reform Interior Ministry

By Ivan Dikov

The Bulgarian Prime Minister announced Friday that his government had requested expert aid from the EU and USA for the reforms in the Interior Ministry.

Stanishev made the announcement in the Parliament during his weekly session of answering questions of the deputies.

The newly appointed Interior Minister Mihail Mikov said later that the expert aid matter would be discussed during Stanishev's working meeting with the ambassadors of the EU states later on Friday.

The Prime Minister stated also that the reforms in the Interior Ministry will continue with staff changes in order to achieve better results in the work of the institution.

At the same time Sergey Stanishev criticized the Supreme Judicial Council for rejecting its Inspectorate's report about the 4000 prosecutor's office lawsuits returned last year for further investigation because it contained grammar mistakes.

"This is not an answer to the problems. The Bulgarian judicial system sometimes behaves as if it was away from the problems that Bulgaria has with respect to corruption", the Prime Minister said adding that all institutions - prosecutors, courts - must work efficiently in order to achieve certain results.

Stanishev did not deny that Bulgaria had a serious problem with corruption but he pointed out he emphasized specific measures rather than short-term campaigns.

The Prime Minister pointed to the State National Security Agency set up in December 2007 at his personal initiative as one of the measures to combat corruption among high-ranking officials.

Another measure Stanishev mentioned was the draft Conflict of Interests Act which had been approved by the cabinet, and would be voted by the Parliament next week.

The new act will refer not only to executive branch officials but also Members of Parliament, mayors, and magistrates.

Stanishev criticized the rightist opposition, which in his words provided unconfirmed information to Bulgaria's EU partners, and presented it as the most corrupt country only to win political dividends.

"This is the only government with one of its Ministers resigning only because of doubts about corruption", Stanishev said meaning the former Economy Minister Rumen Ovcharov who was accused of illegal activities by the former Director of the National Investigation Service Angel Aleksandrov.

Stanishev's current campaign to reform the executive branch in order to better combat corruption and organized crime was caused by the recent revelations of connections between top ranking Interior officials and suspicious businessmen. The scandal prompted the resignation of Interior Minister Rumen Petkov, and the appointment of four new ministers.

According to the press service of the government, the engagements of Bulgaria in relation to its EU integration, as well as the expectations of the EC concerning the reforms in the judicial system will also be a topic of the discussions.

Deputy ministers Meglena Plugchieva and Ivailo Kalfin, as well as Justice Minister Meglena Tacheva, Interior Minister Mihail Mikov, and EU Affairs Minister Gergana Grancharova will also take part in the meeting.

Society Old Building Crumbles, Kills Woman in Sofia A 60 years old woman died in Sofia today after and old building in her own yard crumbled and buried her underneath. | read |

Business Number of Finland Tourists Visiting Bulgaria Drops Finland's Ambassador to Sofia Kauko Jämsén announced Thursday that the number of Finnish tourists visiting Bulgaria had dropped in the last two years, the Bulgarian National Radio reported. | read |

· Bulgaria PM Speaks in Parliament about Customs and Corruption · Rightist MP: Production of Synthetic Drugs Finances Parties in Bulgaria

· Half EU Goes to Court Because of Bulgaria and Romania Diplomas · Bulgaria Defense Minister Promises Strict Measures for His Jurisdiction

Majority of Bulgarians See Country Economy as Worsening

Two thirds of the Bulgarians are defining the general economic situation in the country as worsened or deeply worsened.

The information comes from a research conducted by the National Statistics Institute.

67,2% of the Bulgarian households barely make the ends meet, shows the research.

16,3% of those interviewed stated that they are drowning in debts, while 5,6% are forced to dip into their savings. 7,3% say that they manage to save a little and only 0,1% respond that save a lot.

The financial state of 36,5% of the households has not changed during the last year; it has worsened a little for 28% and a lot for another 25,8%. Just 7,7% of those interviewed report that their household's financial state has improved.

A mere 6,7% of the households expect that their financial state is going to improve in the next year while an impressive 19,9% are forecasting a significant change for the worse.

77,6% believe that the prices have gone up way too much with the majority expecting that even those prices will continue to increase.

67,5% do not consider saving money in the next year as a real possibility. 75,7% determine a car purchase in the next 12 months as impossible while 88,2% see the purchase of a residence as something out of their reach. 65% admit that they will not be able to set aside enough money for home improvement.

Bulgaria Consumers Alarmed by Inflation

Consumers in Bulgaria have a strong and alarming sense about the growing inflation in the country.

This serious drop in the consumers' confidence is expressed in the results from a poll conducted by the National Statistics Institute. Data from the poll demonstrates that in April the consumers are with 2,2 points more unsatisfied compared to January.

The satisfaction decrease is even strongly expressed by the population in the cities where it has been registered at minus 3,4 points.

Overall consumers have evaluated their financial state as worsening. Those interviewed in April by the National Statistics Institute also believe that prices will continue to go up.

As reported yesterday, the Convergence Report 2008 of the European Central Bank (ECB) shows considerable risk that inflation in Bulgaria will continue to rise.

From April 2007 till March 2008, Bulgaria recorded a 12-month average inflation rate of 9.4%, which is considerably above the reference value of 3.2% accepted in the Eurozone, says the ECB report.

"Inflation is expected to rise further in the coming months," the report reads.

Bulgaria 2008 Economy Slow Down Forecasted by Bank Austria

The Bulgarian economy is expected to experience a slow down in 2008, according to experts from Bank Austria.

The expected growth rate for 2008 is 5,6%, compared to the growth of over 6% registered in the last several years.

For the year 2009, the forecast is even grimmer - 4,8%. The prognosis is based on the vulnerability of the Bulgarian economy from the global economy trends and the consequences of the world credit crisis.

The experts cite several treacherous tendencies. Among them is the strong dependence of the economy from foreign investments and other funds coming from abroad. These two factors would, most likely, bring the influence of the global financial crisis to Bulgaria.

Other factors that might limit the Gross Domestic Product's growth are the increasing salaries, which continuously surpass the market competition along with the unemployment decrease paired with the lack of available human resources.

The remaining double-digit inflation continues to jeopardize consumer purchasing power and business expectations. This leads to the prediction that some foreign investors will temporarily withdraw from the country with vacation real estate properties being affected the most.

There are already numerous indications about the exodus of British and Irish investors. On the other hand-side, brokers point out the increasing interest on the part of Russian and Greek investors.

The volume of credit loans is also expected to decrease since banks will be forced to count mostly on Bulgarian citizens.

Despite the economy slow down, Bank Austria experts predict a future decrease and stabilization in the areas of deficit and inflation.

Since many national economy sectors retain their strong presence, in the first half of 2008 the country's Gross Domestic Product is expected to remain strong. The manufacturing development and the growth in sales are still among the strongest in the EU.

The ever-increasing development of the credit and financing markets in Bulgaria would continue to support the real estate markets and the entrepreneurship. Bulgaria is experiencing continuous interest on the part of international investors despite the hardships in the area of world financing.

The increase in retail sales has also been a continuous tendency in the last several months.

The deficit and the import compared to the same period of last year have gone up, however, the export is growing at an even higher rate.

The foreign direct investments have also increased, despite the fact that at the moment, they cover only 31% of the deficit.

Another interesting mention by the Bank Austria experts is the expectation that in the future the Bulgarian government will be transformed from a debtor to a creditor, which is due to the decreasing external debt - down to BGN 5,1 billion or 16% of the GDP with an early payoff to the World Bank, made in March by the Ministry of Finance.

The mentioned positive trends are the bases for the Bank Austria prognosis for a Gross Domestic Product of 6.25% for the first half of 2008.

Factory for Chinese Cars to Be Built in Bulgaria's Lovech

A factory for the assembling of Chinese cars of the Brilliance brand will be constructed in the northern Bulgarian city of Lovech, the Lovech Municipal Administration announced.

The factory will be built by the newly founded company Litex Motors, which has a capital of BGN 20 M.

The Lovech businessman Grisha Ganchev is the main investor in the company. His partner is Corporate Bank, which has a share of 8% in Litex Motors.

The company is going to produce cars and motorbikes, to trade with spare parts and fuels.

The cars produced in Lovech will be destined for the market in Bulgaria and the neighboring Balkan countries.

The new factory is expected to employ 2000 local people.

Number of Finland Tourists Visiting Bulgaria Drops

Finland's Ambassador to Sofia Kauko Jämsén announced Thursday that the number of Finnish tourists visiting Bulgaria had dropped in the last two years, the Bulgarian National Radio reported.

Even though Bulgaria is still the third most popular foreign holiday destination in Finland, the number of Finnish holidaymakers has dropped from 90 000 in 2005 to 65 000 in 2007.

"The Finnish citizens like Bulgaria as a tourist destination but they are not completely satisfied with the service in your resorts and the high levels of noise in them", His Excellency explained during his visit to the resort town of Vurshetz in northwest Bulgaria.

Finland's Ambassador announced, however, that the bilateral trade had growth threefold in the last two years to reach about USD 100 M per year.

Yet, Jämsén declared he was still dissatisfied with the volume of the Bulgaria-Finland commerce. In his words, the two states had the opportunity to expand their economic links, and there were conditions for more Finnish investments in Bulgaria.

New Metallurgic Factory to Open in Bulgaria's Kurdzhali

A new zinc plant equipped with the latest environment-friendly technology will be built in the southern Bulgarian city of Kurdzhali.

The contract for the construction of the new factory was signed on Friday by the Executive Director of the Kurdzhali Lead-Zinc Complex JSC Yordan Yordanov and the manager of the USTRA STROI construction company Nikolay Nikolov.

Apart from the building of the new plant, the project also entails the reconstruction, expansion, and modernization the existing wet extraction facilities of the Kurdzhali Lead-Zinc Complex.

Valentin Zahariev, the Chair of the Board of Directors of INTERTRUST Holding, which is the majority owner of the Lead-Zinc Complex, was also present at the signing of the contract.

The Kurdzhali Lead-Zinc Complex produces sulphuric acid, lead, lead pipes and wire, bismuth, cadmium, zinc and zinc-aluminum alloys as well as selenium and calcium alloys for storage battery industry.

It operates in both domestic and foreign markets, exporting its products to Turkey, Greece, Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Ukraine, Italy, Egypt, Israel and Syria. Presently the company has a total of 983 employees.

Tourism Investors' Union Advertises Bulgaria in Spain

The Bulgarian Union of Tourism Investors (UTI) is starting a massive advertising campaign in Spain presenting Bulgaria as a tourist destination, its press service announced on Friday.

The UTI is currently presenting Bulgaria in the Spanish capital Madrid during the Day of Europe celebrations, which started on Friday. The Week of Europe there was opened with the Bulgarian exhibitions dedicated to the Cyrillic alphabet.

UTI has also offered a joint initiative to one of the largest Spanish tourism companies HALCON Viajes, which intends to start charter flights to Bulgaria in the coming summer.

Another project advertising Bulgaria in Spain will entail the presentation of the country as a golf destination, and efforts to attract Spanish golf companies as investors, representatives of the Bulgarian Embassy in Spain announced.

About 200 000 Bulgarians live in Spain according to unofficial data but Bulgaria is mainly known to the Spanish public with its folk music, yogurt, and the legendary Barcelona FC player Hristo Stoichkov.

Bulgaria Finance Minister Presents First Trimester Budget Report

Over BGN 610 million have been received from the European funds by the end of March. The data comes from a report about the national budget execution for the first trimester of 2008, prepared by Plamen Oresharski, Finance Minister of Bulgaria.

The budget revenue has increased with 33,5% for the first trimester of the current year.

The revenue together with the subsidies according to the consolidated fiscal program amount to a total of BGN 6,744 billion for the first trimester, while by the end of March, the revenues not originating from taxation are calculated at BGN 773,8 million, which is 24.9% from the yearly budget plans.

The subsidies received from the EU structural and cohesion funds, the European Agricultural Fund for the Development of the Rural Areas and the European Angling Fund represent 31.6% from those planned in the yearly budget.

The advanced payments from EU for the contracted operational programs amount to BGN 542, 5 million of the above subsidies.

The budget expenses are calculated at BGN 5,08 billion while the interest payments amount to 42,9% from those planned for the entire year.

The local municipalities have been given BGN 646,5 billion from the budget. The social insurance funds have received another BGN 643,6 million while the judiciary power has been afforded 23,2% more than the same period of last year or a total of BGN 88,6 million.

The fiscal reserve by the end of March of 2008 is BGN 8,088 billion.

Bulgaria Heating, Power, Water Prices May Go Up By Summer

The key heating companies in Bulgaria have asked the State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation to raise heating prices with another 15% to 20% by the summer. They have cited the raising price of natural gas - 24% for the last three trimesters, as the main reason for such demand.

The Commission's Director, Ivan Shushulov explained that the Commission's experts were currently examining the requested raise.

Shushulov has stated that the determination of the new price of natural gas was forthcoming and would be established around July 1. The Commission has already received a prognosis from "Bulgargaz".

According to Shushulov, the new raise requested by "Bulgargaz" was lower than the one they have asked for until now, but despite that, they would certainly not receive it.

Shushulov also announced that the National Electric Company had filed an application in front of the Commission for a 20% electrical power supply price increase.

The three electric distribution companies in Bulgaria - CEZ, EON and EVN are requesting a price jump between 9% and 12% for domestic consumers.

The Commission is expected to make a decision about the new electrical power supply price in a few weeks. Shushulov has admitted that, at the moment, the Commission was not yet ready with the price determination.

He has, however, confirmed that the water supply price for Sofia would be going up beginning this summer. The expected raise is BGN 1,22 including the Value Added Tax, as requested by the concessionaire "Sofia Water."

This request will be granted because "Sofia Water" has complied already with the conditions imposed by the Commission in its capacity as Water Regulator.

Bulgaria State Administration Employees with a Longer Workday

The state and municipal sections servicing the public will be open for business for additional two hours after their official closing time if they still have customers. This is included in the changes in the Administrative Services Decree.

According to Nikolay Vassilev, Minister of State Administration, those changes will become effective by the end of the month.

The decree's addendum stipulates that the business hours for those sections would be 8 hours or more. Vassilev also specified that the Administration's visiting hours might not necessarily coincide with the general work hours.

As an example, the public could be serviced between noon and 8:00 pm, if this proves more convenient for the Administration's customers.

The Minister explained that in case of a waiting line after closing, all customers who have entered the office prior to that would be attended to. The Administration's employees will be mandated to service those customers while their workday will be lengthened with no more than two additional hours.

Vassilev expressed his belief that the forthcoming changes would make the Administration more organized and shorten the lines.

The Minister was adamant that the new method, already used by other countries, would start working soon. According to him, it is essential for the State Administration to begin resembling the private sector by adjusting to its customers' needs.

Most Bulgarian Tourists Spent Recent Holidays Abroad

About 36,000 Bulgarian tourists chose to spend their May vacation in foreign destinations, while three times fewer holidaymakers preferred to stay in their homeland, survey of the National Tourism Board revealed.

Employees across Bulgaria enjoyed a six-day holiday in the period May 1 - 6 to celebrate the International Labour Day and Saint George's Day.

"The data are not so accurate but it is certain that the number of the Bulgarians, who traveled abroad in their days off is much higher than the number of those that spend their vacation in the country. That has become a clear trend" State Tourism Agency's Chairwoman Aneliya Krushkova said.

"In 2009, we are going to count the tourists through the so called satellite account so that the figures will be absolutely precise," she added.

The two Bulgarian institutions, which work in the sphere of tourism, agreed to prepare a stable strategy for the development of the field.

"The wider framework has been set, and we can now develop a marketing strategy with help from the business sector," Krushkova explained.

Bozhkov Drops to Second Place in Bulgaria Richest People Chart

Bulgaria's Vassil Bozhkov, former owner of football club CSKA Sofia and chief of Nove Holding, dropped to second place in the rankings of Slava magazine aiming to make an objective chart of the richest people in the country.

The richest Bulgarians are said to be Tihomir Mitev, Martin Mitev and Ivo Kamenov who own the TIM Group with estimated wealth of about BGN 2,5 B. The major companies of the group are Chimimport and the Central Cooperative Bank.

Bozhkov, who previously made it to spot No 51 in the chart of the 100 richest businessmen in Central and Eastern Europe, left second in the local chart with BGN 1,5 B.

Third is businessman Tseko Minev who owns First Investment Bank with about BGN 800 M while fourth in the chart is Hristo Kovachki who made headlines last summer after setting up a new party called LIDER ahead of the local vote.

Sofia mayor Boyko Borrisov's life partner Tsvetelina Borislavova is also in the chart with a share in EIBank estimated at about BGN 100 M.

According to the magazine, the chart aims to show the real business influence of the richest Bulgarian companies calculated in money value.

Cigarette Factory in Bulgaria's Plovdiv Closes Down in One Week

The cigarette factory in Bulgaria's second largest city of Plovdiv is going to work until May 12, when its employees are supposed to be dismissed according to the notifications they have received.

The factory is currently working at full capacity in order to meet a large order for the internal market and to produce the planned smaller quantities of cigarettes for exports, plovdiv24.com reported.

The workers of the cigarette factory have accepted the decision to close it down after dramatic negotiations in which each of them was promised to receive 1,8 gross monthly salaries for each year they have worker at the plant.

The company management has not notified the employees yet whether the factory was going to be privatized quickly by selling its assets on the stock market, which was the idea two months ago.

At the beginning of 2008, the Governing Board of Bulgaria's tobacco monopoly Bulgartabac decided to close down two of its four factories - the ones in the cities of Plovdiv and Stara Zagora.

Israeli Company Funds Business Park in Bulgaria's Varna with EUR 59 M

The Israeli company Africa Israel Investments (AFI) is going to fund the construction of the Business Park in the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Varna.

AFI's subsidiary AFI Europe signed Sunday an agreement with Investcreditbank to provide EUR 59 M for the project.

The Varna Business Park, which is located close to the Varna Airport and to the Black Sea coast, and includes 35 000 square meters of office space plus another 15 000 square meters that are currently undergoing reconstruction.

Only the plot where the Business Park is located together with the three existing buildings is worth EUR 76,5 M.

The first building of the Varna Business Park was opened in July, 2006.

AIF is an Israeli holding company owned by the billionaire Lev Levaev, whose wealth is estimated at USD 6,5 B, and who currently lives in London.

AIF Europe has 32 projects in eight European countries.

Blackout in Bulgaria's Sunny Beach Torments Tourists

Major power failure in Bulgaria's coastal resort of Slanchev Bryag (Sunny Beach) has caused troubles for early tourists.

The union of owners in the resort reported that there is no electricity in most of Sunny Beach and there are tourists who have been trapped in hotel elevators. Restaurants also stopped working due to the power cut.

Hoteliers say EVN, which owns the power distribution network in the region, could not tell them when the electricity will be restored.

Oil Rebounds on Turkish Attacks

Oil prices have rebounded above USD 113 a barrel on concerns about Turkish air raids against Kurdish targets in Northern Iraq.

Worries about the raids appear to have outweighed the strengthening US dollar, which has been recently pushing oil prices down, BBC informed.

Renewed tensions in Northern Iraq have raised concerns about the security of oil supplies in the region, even though there have been no reported attacks on oil installations.

Friday bombings targeted Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) hideouts in the Qandil mountains along the Iraq-Iran border and destroyed 43 targets, including a communication centre, Turkey said.

Bulgaria Varna Soon to Have New BGN 160 Million Stadium

The investment amount of BGN 160 million is expected for the new "Varna" stadium.

The sum could end up even higher, according to statements made in front of sports reporters today by the contractor "Project Management Company" and the investor "Sports Complex Varna".

65% of the investor's shares belong to "Himimport" while the remaining 35% are owned by the Varna Municipality.

Construction works are planned to begin in the fall and are expected to continue for about 26 months with another year needed to move the infrastructure. The stadium will be fully completed in 2011 at the earliest, and is now in the technical project stage.

According to the Executive Director of "Project Management", foreign specialists and materials will have to be used for the construction works because they lack in Bulgaria.

The negotiations with owners of plots located near the new stadium are continuing. So far, "Sports Complex Varna" has acquired two of the plots they wish to own with five other property deals forthcoming in the near future, according to TIM's corporative secretary.

"Himimport" is also the investor in the track and field stadium "Mladost" (Youth), which needs another 0.4 hectares for auxiliary fields in order to respond to international standards. The company is already negotiating with the Varna Municipality.

The later project has an expected investment amount of BGN 38 million and will have a capacity of 2000 spectators with all Varna residents being able to use the facility when there are no competitions.

A hotel and shopping center adjacent to the "Mladost" field have also been planned.

Bulgarian Construction Companies to Work in Venezuela

There are increasing opportunities for Bulgarian construction firms to work in Venezuela as the demand for construction there is increasing.

This was announced by the Chair of Bulgaria-Venezuela Chamber of Commerce Stefan Zlatorov, who met Thursday with the Deputy Chair of the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry Tzvetan Simeonov.

The two discussed questions related to the economic links between Bulgaria and Venezuela and agreed there were opportunities to realize common construction projects.

The Chambers' representatives also made arrangements to exchange information about supply and demand by Bulgarian and Venezuelan firms with respect to the establishment of bilateral business contacts.

Zlatarov pointed out that there were many manufacturers in Venezuela willing to export to Europe but the transport expenses reduced the profits.

The trade between Bulgaria and Venezuela was worth USD 19,5 M in 2007, which is 58,5% increase compared to the 2006 level.

Bulgaria exports to Venezuela lathes, electrical transformers, chocolate bars, plastic pipes and hoses, insecticides, furniture, and antibiotics. 99,58% of the Venezuelan exports to Bulgaria consist of oil products, the remaining 0,4% are pharmaceuticals.

The Bulgaria-Venezuela Chamber of Commerce exists since 2002. It is headquartered in the Venezuelan capital Caracas.

French Army Might Be Stripped of Uniforms Due to Strike in Bulgaria Vidin

A seamstress strike in the town of Vidin in Northwest Bulgaria could leave many French soldiers without uniforms.

300 workers from the "Vida Style" factory, a big clothing manufacturer, abandoned their sawing machines Thursday and blocked the factory's entrance.

The seamstresses are frustrated by the fact that they have not received their salaries for the last three months and are asking the factory's owners to pay them before they resume any work.

The women have been left without pay since February while their January salary has been paid on April 9. They complain about having to spend their Easter Holidays in misery and are living without money for even basic supplies.

According to the seamstresses, they are overwhelmed with work, having to saw not only for the French Army but also for other customers such as Italy. They have stated that despite the fact that the factory's warehouses are filled with production and loaded trucks leave for Europe every Friday, the money for their salaries always seems unavailable.

"Vida Style's" Commercial Director offered as explanation the factory's financial difficulties due to the repayment of a loan.

In order for the management to avoid further problems, the factory employees have been sent on paid leave till May 17.

"Vida Style" inherited the assets and the clients of the former state socialist factory and had survived the transition period without any significant problems. However, the new owners are presently selling plots from the big factory yard and many believe that they are investing the factory's revenues elsewhere.


Bulgaria Defense Minister Promises Strict Measures for His Jurisdiction

Bulgaria's new Defense Minister, Nikolay Tsonev, promised that all necessary measures, provided by the standing orders of the Bulgarian Armed Forces, would be taken to establish if wrongdoings in the military indeed exists and to impose harsh penalties.

The statement was made today, after the official ceremony commemorating the end of World War II.

The Minister did not confirm the authenticity of the information received by its jurisdiction regarding irregularities in the Bulgarian army and qualified it as only "rumors" at this point.

"Administrative irregularities will be dealt with by the military standing orders while the criminal acts are a matter of the Court", stated Tsonev.

The statement comes amidst anonymous allegations received by the Plovdiv's Prosecutor's Office that a male and a female soldier have been having sex while at their duty post.

The Minister pointed out that each received signal does not always prove to be true.

Tsonev also commented on the planned check-ups and explained that they would not be limited to the Property Agency of the Armed Forces, but will involve all Defense Ministry Structures.

"My order provided for the check-ups deadline to be May 17, but it may be prolonged by a week", the minister said.

According to him, two of the military agencies have already asked for an extended deadline due to the high volume of documentation.

General Zlatan Stoykov, Chief of Staff of the Bulgarian Armed Forces, also made a statement regarding the discipline in the Army and confirmed that once established, the wrongdoings will be followed by harsh penalties.

Analysis of the military discipline for the first 5 months of the year will be conducted but the end of May - beginning of June, when the Army commanders will be appointed, according to Stoykov.

Stoykov also made comments regarding the forthcoming decision about the future of the Bulgarian military mission in Iraq.

Future of Bulgaria Military Mission in Iraq to Be Decided in One Week

The decision regarding the future of the Bulgarian military contingent in Iraq could be made as early as a week from today.

This statement was made Friday by General Zlatan Stoykov, Chief of Staff of the Bulgarian Armed Forces, after the official ceremony commemorating the end of World War II.

The decision is a political one and will be made by the Bulgarian Council of Ministers, according to the General. The current government decision about the Bulgarian military mission in Iraq provides for the mission to continue till the end of 2008.

At the moment, Bulgarian rangers serving in Iraq have been relocated from the Temporary Detainee Center "Ashraf". Right now a few of them, along with some American soldiers, are protecting only the remaining US property at the Center.

According to General Stoykov, the current plans are for the Bulgarian soldiers to be withdrawn from Iraq. There is, however, another possible outcome since the US has made a proposal for the dislocation of the soldiers to two other military bases near Baghdad - "Future" and "Copper".

If Bulgaria accepts this proposal, the entire formula of the Bulgarian mission in Iraq will have to be changed since the offer provides for the Bulgarian army to take care of the complete security of either of the two bases, as Stoykov stated.

General Stoykov believes that the option to increase the number of the Bulgarian contingent in Iraq does not exist since a similar move will require additional funds.

The Bulgarian contingent in Iraq is about 150 military servicemen and women. They have been in the Temporary Detainee Center "Ashraf" since May of 2006 to control the Center's regime and provide order and protection of the property and the Iraqi citizens with refugee status temporary placed there.

At the same time, as announced by the Bulgarian National Radio, the return of Bulgarian soldiers from Afghanistan is expected today.

These are two military companies deployed in Kandahar and Kabul, where they were executing assignments for the NATO operation in the country.

Rightist MP: Production of Synthetic Drugs Finances Parties in Bulgaria

There are suspicions synthetic drugs are produced in the pharmaceutical plant in the southern Bulgarian town of Dupnitza and the money goes to party accounts, former head of National Security Service, Atanas Atanasov said Friday.

"These suspicions have not been checked by the police and that is the major problem," Atanasov, who is currently an MP from the rightist Democrats for Strong Bulgaria party, added.

According to Atanasov, the former chief of Bulgaria's main directorate for combating organized crime (GDBOP), Kiril Georgiev, was appointed to the position through lobbying from the region of Dupnitza but said he did not know if that was related to covering up drug production.

A scandal sparked in the beginning of 2008 in the Interior Ministry as alleged Serbian drug smuggler Budimir Kujovic was arrested in the country despite an imposed 10-year ban to enter the country, which he got over accusations of running a laboratory for production of synthetic drugs.

The arrest sparked allegations that high-level officials patronize drug trafficking and synthetic drug production in Bulgaria.

In the beginning of March, the rightist opposition quit the parliamentary committee that was set up in order to throw light on the case calling its work a farce.

Atanasov then said he quits the commission, as he did not want to be part of an attempt to cover up the problems in the Ministry.

Former GDBOP chief Vanyo Tanov also declared work over the Kujovic drug-smuggling case aimed to cover up the current producers of synthetic drugs in Bulgaria.

Tanov said that Kujovic was arrested because he stopped paying the authorities for doing his illegal business of amphetamine production and trafficking.

Bulgaria PM Speaks in Parliament about Customs and Corruption

Customs in Bulgaria are subject to serious monitoring and control, Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev declared during the parliamentary control session on Friday.

The Premier based his statement on a finding of the European Commission revealing that the fight against corruption at the Bulgarian borders continues to yield good results.

Stanhishev admitted, however, that corruption in Bulgaria was a serious problem, existing on each society level.

The Prime Minister stated in front of the Parliament that after January 1, 2007 about 54% of the land Customs stations in the country have been closed.

He also gave an account of 23,350 Customs' violations for the period 2006-2007 with 14,000 of them considered serious and dangerous. His account revealed that 2,7 tons of narcotic drugs, including heroin have been caught at the Bulgarian borders as well as 2,086 counterfeit goods.

Stanishev voiced his opinion that corruption cannot be prevented solely with the efforts of the Parliament and the Executive power. He underlined the importance of the legal system for the success of this fight. According to him, the legal system in Bulgaria still appears alienated from the problems corroding the country.

The Premier reminded the members of the Parliament that the introduction of a bill regulating the conflicts of interest at the higher levels of the government is forthcoming and will affect ministers, Parliament members, magistrates and members of the municipal administration.

Stanishev also stated that he is not yet satisfied with the fight against organized crime in Bulgaria.

Bulgaria Opens Embassy in Estonia

Bulgaria's government has decided to open an embassy in Estonia, the press service of the cabinet announced.

The EU membership of Bulgaria and Estonia has strengthened bilateral relations and increased business dialogue, which provoked opening an embassy in Tallinn, authorities said.

The embassy is also believed to help intensify relationships in the political, economic and cultural spheres.

Estonia opened an embassy in Sofia in 2006.

Bulgarian Govt Updates Visa Regime with Ukraine, Moldova, Albania

Bulgaria's government signed Thursday the agreement for abolishment of the visa regime for Bulgarians traveling to Ukraine, Moldova and Albania.

Bulgarian citizens could travel freely to the countries and stay for 90 days without a visa, Darik Radio reported.

Ukrainians, Moldavians and Albanians with issued visas could also stay and travel through Bulgaria in term of 90 days.

Bulgaria Allocates BGN 87,000 to Interior Ministry for Palestine Police Training

Bulgaria's government decided Thursday to grant the additional sum of BGN 87,000 to the Interior Ministry for training Palestinian police officers.

The money will be allocated from this year's central state budget.

At a Paris conference held in the end of 2007 Bulgaria engaged with training Palestinian forces for helping peace keeping in the Middle East.

The newly accepted EU member-states should allocate a total of 0,17 per cent of their Gross National Income to official foreign countries aid until 2010.

Bulgaria Social Policy Min Tightens Grip over Labour Market

Bulgaria's Social Policy Ministry is to propose increasing fines over violating labour conditions as part of the measures to be taken in the fight against the grey economy on the market.

The proposal will be discussed at the meeting of the three-way ruling coalition to be held during the weekend in the resort town of Bansko.

"The fines will be five times higher than the present ones," Social Minister Emiliya Maslarova explained.

"We will insist on registering all the labour agreements in the system of the General Labour Inspectorate and not only by the National Revenue Agency," she added.

The ministry will also demand expanding the power of the Labour Inspectorate as its staff will be enabled to even close enterprises, which fail to pay imposed fines within three days.

Bulgaria Mayor Betrays Borisov's GERB, Joins Socialist Party

The Mayor of the Vetrino Municipality in northeast Bulgaria Georgi Andreev, who was elected from Sofia Mayor Boyko Borisov's GERB party, became officially member of the ruling Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) on Wednesday.

Andreev was given his party membership card by the Chair of the BSP - the Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev.

In the last local elections in the fall of 2007 Andreev from GERB defeated BSP's candidate in Vetrino.

The informal leader of the GERB party, the Sofia Mayor Boyko Borisov commented that he hoped Andreev would now resign from the position of mayor of the municipality.

Borisov said that as a member of GERB Andreev had signed a declaration stating that if he broke the principles and morals that led him to join the party, he would have to resign from the post he had been elected.

"If Andreev's lack of morals turns out to be true, I am glad to present him to the BSP because in the BSP they all lack morals", Borisov stated.

The Vetrino Municipality is located between the cities of Varna and Shumen. It has about 7 000 inhabitants, and no urban population.

Bulgaria Socialists Suggest Raising Health Insurance without Additional Fees

The Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) is going to propose a plan for increasing the universal health insurance payments from 6% to 8% but without the introduction of additional fees for the workers and their employers.

The Socialists are going to look for ways to increase the funding of the universal health insurance through the insurance system itself.

The news was announced by the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ivaylo Kalfin on Wednesday after the joint sessions of BSP Supreme Council and the parliamentary group of the BSP-led leftist "Coalition for Bulgaria".

The Supreme Council of the BSP has also approved the suggestion to increase the state health insurance payments for youngsters and students from 3% to 6% of the minimum wage, the new Health Minister Evgeniy Zhelev announced.

Bulgaria's Finance Minister Plamen Oresharski said in turn that he supported the idea to increase the health insurance payments, and that his team was going to spend the summer considering the different options for doing this without raising the insurance fees paid by employers and their employees.

The 2% increase of health insurance payments might be achieved at the expense of the social security budget.

The Health Minister said that an internal redistribution of the insurance system was very probable, whereas the Deputy PM Kalfin said that if the 8% social security payments were approved, they would take effect on January 1, 2009.

Zhelev also announced that the Socialists would insist that 5% of Bulgaria's GDP be spent on health. The current figure is 4,2% of the GDP.

The suggested changes will be discussed at the end of this week at the early meeting of the Council of the governing three-way coalition, where the BSP is the senior partner.

New Interior Minister Reforms Directorate for Combating Organized Crime

Bulgaria's Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime (GDBOP) will be reformed completely after a thorough analysis of the organized crime in the country.

The news was announced by the new Interior Minister Mihail Mikov after Tuesday's meeting of the top officials of the Ministry, which was attended by the Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev as well.

In Mikov's words, the GDBOP had to be restructured according to the geography of criminal activity in Bulgaria because organized crime was concentrated in certain points of the country.

Thus, the GDBOP units in regions without significant organized crime activity are going to be closed down, and merged with the regular criminal police.

According to Mikov, the GDBOP must be a relatively independent unit with operative and intelligence functions but close related to central unit of the Interior Ministry.

"It must have its front offices and centers but in other parts of the country it must be in a more latent state within the criminal police", the recently appointed Interior Minister explained.

Mikov also said that the two key agencies of the Interior that are currently in charge of the use of intelligence and tapping devices, the Directorate for Operative-Technical Information (DOTI) and the Directorate for Operative Investigation (DOI) were to be merged into a new agency but it was still unclear whether it would be part of the Ministry, or not.

Members of the governing coalition had put forth the idea that the new agency of DOTI+DOI must be equally distant from both the Interior Ministry and from the State Agency for National Security.

The reform plan of the Interior Minister also envisages internal redistribution of functions in his ministry because many of its units had duplicating powers and competences, and interfered with the work of one another.

Mikov declared that immediate measures would be taken to clear all sorts of corruption in the Interior by countering corruption practices and increasing the salaries of the Ministry's employees.

A strong Internal Security unit within Mikov's Ministry has also been put forth at Tuesday's meeting.

The Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev declared in turn that he expected from the Interior Ministry to awe the organized crime groups in Bulgaria. He stated immediate steps were necessary to clear its image and to restore people's trust in the system.

Bulgaria's future joining of the Schengen Zone and the respective measures was also discussed at the Interior Ministry meeting.

New Defense Minister: There Is Lack of Transparency in Bulgarian Army

The recently appointed new Bulgarian Minister of Defense Nikolay Tsonev commented Tuesday that there had been a lack of transparency in the affairs of the army in the recent years.

Before the Nova TV Channel, Tsonev stated that new limits to secrecy in the Bulgarian armed forces should be set .

"The Bulgarian Army has a serious authority in society but in the last few years it has been talked of as a structure that works under a cover", the Defense Minister said adding that he as an officer felt worried and offended by this situation.

Tsonev was positive that a policy of transparency in the defense field was needed. He reminded that he had stopped all deals of the Defense Ministry involving real estate barters as soon as he assumed his position.

"I will do my best in order to enable the society to know what goes on in the army, and to provide for a real civic control over it", Tsonev said.

In his words, the lack of transparency in the army largely resulted from the high level of secrecy in the defense field but he did say that many people had been working to maintain it.

Tsonev also said the former Defense Minister Veselin Bliznakov was hardly to blame for the lack of transparency. Rather, it was likely that different experts had advised the Ministry to maintain secrecy.

On the Day of the Bulgarian Army, May 6, the Defense Minister explained as well that the 32 000 troops the country currently had were the optimal number for the goals that had been set, namely providing for the national security, and assisting the NATO partners.

Minister Tsonev also outlined the three main spheres in which he would work during his term in office: serious functional changes in the Defense Ministry, enhancement of the social package for the military, and the creation of a pool of apartments for those serving.

Tsonev denied the allegations he knew the alleged crime bosses from the town of Dupnitsa, the Galevi Brothers, during his term as Chair of the Board of Directors of the Dupnitsa wine producing factory.

The revealed acquaintance of the former Interior Minister Rumen Petkov with the Galevi Brothers was an important part of the scandals that shook the Interior Ministry in the last months, and led to cabinet staff changes.

Bulgaria President: We Have Strong Army

The President Georgi Parvanov stated Tuesday Bulgaria had a strong army that enjoyed the trust and love of the people.

In his capacity as the Commander-in-Chief, Parvanov participated in the military parade in downtown Sofia for St. George's Day, which is the Day of the Bulgarian Army (May 6).

The Head of the General Staff Gen. Zlatan Stoykov, the Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev, and the recently appointed new Defense Minister Nikolay Tsonev also attended the parade.

In his speech the President underscored the fact that with its heroic deeds, the Bulgarian Army today was once again a source of national pride and authentic patriotism.

Parvanov pointed out that the army was the symbol of Bulgaria's statehood, and the epitome of the national security, and an important prerequisite for the prosperity of the nation.

"We have a strong army - strong with the trust of the people throughout all these decades and today. Yes, the Bulgarian people love their military. And our army is strong - this has been proven by the assessments of our allies and partners", the Bulgarian President declared.

Parvanov said as well that the Bulgarian armed forces were as good as those of other NATO states and that Bulgaria was a predictable enemy in its efforts to promote peace.

In his words, it was essential that the army continue its modern and technological structuring, that the social package for the military be realized, and that further investments in the professional military education be made.

About 800 troops participated in the St. George's Day military parade in downtown Sofia, all of whom are now professional soldiers as in 2007 Bulgaria did away with its draft. The units that took part in the even represented the different types of the Bulgarian armed forces.

The parade included demonstration of military equipment such as T-72 tanks, armored carriers, BMP armored vehicles, and the newest piece of equipment in the Bulgarian Army - the US made M 1117 Guardian armor carrier.

MiG 29 fighters, Su-25 and Pilatus planes as well as Cougar, Mi-24, and Mi-17 helicopters were also presented.

Defense Minister Greets Bulgaria Troops Abroad through Video Connection

Bulgaria's recently appointed Defense Minister Nikolay Tsonev greeted Monday the Bulgarian troops currently on missions abroad through a video connection on the eve of May 6, St. George's Day and Day of the Army.

The Head of the Bulgarian General Staff Gen. Zlatan Stoykov joined the Defense Minister in the video conference.

The senior representative of the Bulgarian contingent in Kosovo, Lieutenant-Cornel Dimitar Vulchev reported that the troops there were still finding mines, grenades, and other types of weapons at the Kosovo residents, but that the level of the threat for the Bulgarian soldiers there was assessed as low.

Lieutenant-Cornel Rusi Rusev, who is in charge of the Bulgarian unit in Iraq, reported that the 155-strong unit was successfully guarding the Ashraf Camp for Iranian refugees, and participating in Coalition operations.

Rusev pointed out the Bulgarian soldiers mastered the use of US military equipment, and that 80 of them have been awarded by the US command.

Cornel Valentin Burov from the Bulgarian contingent in Afghanistan announced during the video conference that the Bulgarian medical unit in the capital Kabul was the busiest as it was proving various medical services to local people.

The situation of the Bulgarian contingent in Bosnia and Herzegovina remained the most peaceful compared to the other three spots where Bulgarian units participate in international missions.

Currently Bulgaria has 155 military personnel in Iraq, 400 in Afghanistan, and 38 in Kosovo.

The video conference connection with Bulgarian missions abroad at the eve of the Army Day (May 6) has become traditional in the recent years.

Later on Monday afternoon, the Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov officially presented the recently promoted high-ranking army officers with their new epaulets.

A number of concerts of Bulgarian Army orchestras and other cultural events dedicated to May 6 are scheduled to take place all over the country.

A large part of downtown Sofia is with limited access between 2pm and 10pm for a second day in a row because of the drills for the May 6 Military Parade.

Bulgaria PM: Salaries of All Medical Staff Go Up 15%

The Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev announced Monday that that the salaries of all medical staff in hospitals funded by the Health Ministry would go up 15%, and that the staff of Sofia's Emergency Health Center "N.I. Pirogov" would receive a 30%-pay raise.

Stanishev made the announcement after he visited Pirogov together with the Health Minister Evgeniy Zhelev and discussed the situation of the emergency hospital with its Director Prof. Dimitar Radenovski.

The whole staff of Pirogov is going to receive the increase with their April salaries on May 20.

In their tour around the center, Stanishev and Zhelev inspected the two emergency units, 105 and 108.

In the words of members of the Pirogov staff, the Prime Minister had declined the invitation to take a more extensive tour of the emergency health center and of the adjacent hospital, dariknews.bg reported.

The reason for the high-ranking visit to the emergency center is allegedly the readiness of Pirogov doctors and nurses to go on strike.

In the spring of 2007 the Pirogov staff staged daily protest rallies for three months demanding a 50%-pay raise and new medical equipment. The protest ended after a new Governing Board of the emergency center was elected by the doctors received on a 15%-increase of their salaries.

CEI Summit Says Europe Incomplete without Balkans

During the 15th summit of the presidents of the countries part of the Central European Initiative, regional leaders declared that Balkan nations and Turkey are integral to the European stability.

According to reports from the event in Macedonia's city of Ohrid, presidents including Bulgaria's Georgi Parvanov agreed that the European Union would benefit from allowing the western Balkans and Turkey to quickly join the bloc.

"Europe can't be whole without expanding to the western Balkans," Albanian President Bamir Topi said during the meeting's first joint session, as cited by Deutsche Welle.

Turkish President Abdullah Gul, who was a guest at the summit, said his country's membership in the EU would "help transform the EU in a global player."

"Accession to the EU remains the main incentive for the continuation of reforms in the region," he added.

"There are still risks, which must not be underestimated," Macedonia's president, Branko Crvenkovski commented on the issue of Kosovo.

Although Kosovo was a hot topic on the agenda in Ohrid, it was not represented at the meeting.

CEI Summit in Ohrid Continues

Bulgaria's head of state Georgi Parvanov is in Macedonia's city of Ohrid for the second day of the 15th summit of the presidents of the countries that are part of the Central European Initiative.

On Saturday seventeen presidents are discussing issues as energy and economic perspectives for the European countries.

A topic is also the unsolved dispute between Athens and Skopje over the name of Macedonia.

Romania's President Traian Basescu and his Italian counterpart Giorgio Napolitano announced they would not join the summit due to some engagements.

A guest of honour at the event is Turkey's leader Abdullah Gül.


Half EU Goes to Court Because of Bulgaria and Romania Diplomas

Almost half of the EU states will have to go to Court because those countries' legislatures are yet to recognize the secondary diplomas issued by colleges and universities in Bulgaria and Romania.

The news came from the Romanian Information Agency NewsIn and was confirmed by the Bulgarian Information Agency BTA.

The 10 countries that are going to the Court in Strassburg are Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, France, Great Britain, Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg, Portugal and Spain.

According to the European Commission cited by NewsIn, this is a unnecessary obstacle created by the fact that the ten countries have not yet legally implemented the rules from Decree 100/2006, which provides a list of professional qualifications that must be automatically recognized.

The deadline to officially recognize those diplomas has been January 1, 2007.

The refusal of the ten countries to acknowledge them means that Bulgarian and Romanian attorneys, doctors or sailors cannot apply for a job without first passing an evaluation test, which contradicts the law that specialists from the newly joining countries can be hired only on the basis of their diplomas.

The EC has begun the procedure against those ten countries in 2007 with the filing of the suit as the last step.

The EC spokesperson has stated that the process was a slow one and could take up to two years.

According to the EC there have not been any complaints filed on the part of Bulgarian and Romanian citizens and the commission has initiated the procedure automatically.

European Central Bank Warns of Rising Inflation in Bulgaria

The European Central Bank (ECB) has published its Convergence Report 2008 that states there is considerable risk of inflation in Bulgaria to continue rising.

Over the reference period from April 2007 to March 2008, Bulgaria recorded a 12-month average inflation rate of 9.4%, which is considerably above the reference value of 3.2% accepted in the Eurozone, the report says.

"Inflation is expected to rise further in the coming months," the report reads.

Looking ahead, the latest available inflation forecasts from major international institutions range from 9.1% to 9.9% for 2008 and from 5.9% to 6.0% for 2009.

"Risks to these inflation projections are on the upside and are associated with larger-than-expected increases in energy, food and administered prices," the document says.

The Convergence Report is an assessment of the economic and legal convergence of ten EU Member States: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Sweden.

It examines whether a high degree of sustainable economic convergence has been achieved and gauges compliance with the statutory requirements to be fulfilled for national central banks to become an integral part of the Eurosystem.

EC and ECB Give Slovakia Green Light to Join the Eurozone in 2009

The European Commission and the European Central Bank approved Slovakia's joining of the Eurozone on January 1, 2009.

Thus, Slovakia is to become the 16th Eurozone member after Malta and Cyprus joined on January 1, 2008, and the second Eastern European state to do so after Slovenia's accession on January 1, 2007.

The finance ministers of the EU states are expected to ratify the decision of Slovakia's accession to the Eurozone in July.

The EC report that approved Slovakia also stated that the Czech Republic, Hungary, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, and Romania would not be ready to adopt the euro before 2010. Poland is not expected to meet the criteria before 2012.

According to the report, the East European states have three main problems - most have a higher inflation than the required, some have a large budget deficit, and some still have not joined the Eurozone currency mechanism ERM II.

Slovakia on the other hand has met all of the Maastricht criteria for the adoption of the euro. Its inflation is 2,2%, which well below the 3%-ceiling.

France Ambassador to Bulgaria: We Hope for Action against Organized Crime

France's Ambassador to Sofia Etienne de Poncins said Wednesday that the EU was hoping Bulgaria would soon take action to combat organized crime.

De Poncins made this statement in the northeast city of Shumen, where he is on a visit for Europe's Day, May 9, the Bulgarian private Darik Radio reported.

His Excellency pointed out that the June Report of the European Commission on Bulgaria's progress would be critically important for the country. That is why quick steps against organized crime were needed.

"We believe in the initiatives that the Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev will take in this direction, and the reforms that he will carry out", De Poncins said.

His Excellency is visiting Shumen at the invitation of the Bulgarian Member of the European Parliament Metin Kazak. He met with the Mayor of Shumen Krasimir Kostov.

The two agreed to organize a Bulgarian-French business forum to present the investment opportunities in the Shumen region.

During his visit the French Ambassador is going to give a lecture before students from Shumen University and from the Shumen Foreign Language High School.

His Excellency is also going to open a EU information center in Shumen later on Wednesday.

Environment Ministry: No Risks of EU Suits against Bulgaria

The Ministry of Environment and Waters announced Tuesday there were no risks of legal suits against Bulgaria in the European Court despite the initiation of a new punitive procedure by the European Commission over the government's failure to issue industrial permits by October 30, 2007.

After the EC press service announced that EC had sent a first written warning to nine EU countries, including Bulgaria, the Bulgarian Environment Ministry said it sent a letter last week to the Commission notifying it the needed permits would be ready by September 30, 2008.

The Ministry's letter includes a detailed schedule for the issuing of the permits depending on the respective sectors.

The Environment Ministry pointed out that the newest EC punitive procedure was affecting nine EU states and not only Bulgaria, and this was just the first warning, which meant the government would be ready with the industrial permits before the second step took effect.

The EC remarks about the application of the Directive for Environmental Impact Assessment have already been addressed with changes in the Environment Act, according to the Ministry, and they had referred only to purely technical and linguistic matters.

The Ministry of Environment completely rejected the reports that the punitive procedure against Bulgaria for its failure to submit its 2010, 2015, and 2020 carbon dioxide emissions estimates had entered the second stage.

According to the Ministry, the EC had made no such move as Bulgaria had submitted its estimates within the deadline after it received the first warning.

EU Commission Rules out Russia's Participation in Nabucco

Key EU Commissioners excluded Monday night the possibility that Russia might join the Nabucco gas transit pipeline project, eubusiness.com reported.

"Russia is working with its own project, South Stream. They have never expressed any wish to join Nabucco. We should not ask Russia to join a project which they have never shown interest to join", the European Energy Commissioner Andris Pielbalgs said after his meeting with the Russian Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko.

Pielbalgs said there had been no discussions about Russia's potential participation in the Nabucco pipeline.

The EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner has also ruled out any possibility that Russia might become one of the gas suppliers for the EU-sponsored Nabucco pipeline.

"It's of high strategic interest and importance that we keep to our strategic goal of diversification, not just other resources but also other pipelines", Waldner said.

The main purpose of the Nabucco project is to diversify the gas supplies of the Union with deliveries from the Caspian region (Iran, Turkmenistan, Azerbajan) and from the Middle East (Egypt) thereby reducing EU's dependence on Russian energy resources.

The international developments, however, have fuelled fears that the EU might not be able to secure enough natural gas to fill up the capacity of the projected pipeline.

In addition, the Russian South Stream gas transit pipeline is widely considered a competing project.

Bulgaria is the country where both Nabucco and South Stream cross their routes. The Bulgarian ministers and diplomats have recently been active in initiating contacts with potential gas suppliers for Nabucco, notably during President Parvanov's recent visits to Azerbaijan and Egypt.

EU Commission Initiates New Punitive Procedure against Bulgaria

The European Commission is starting a new punitive procedure against Bulgaria (and eight other EU member states) over the failure to issue on time permits for a number of industrial installations already in operations, the Commission press service announced.

The nine EU countries (Бelgium, Bulgaria, Estonia, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, and Spain) that have failed to issue industrial permits in line with the Directive on Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control have been sent a first written warning by the Commission.

The Directive aims to control industrial emissions to air, water, and soil.

Over 9 000 industrial installations in the nine states are remaining without new or updated out of a total of some 52 000 targeted industrial objects in all of the EU.

The names of Bulgaria's factories that are in operation without the complex permits have not been released but according to unofficial information the country's biggest steel-making plant Kremikovtzi is one of them.

Meanwhile, another punitive procedure against Bulgaria that started several months ago is entering its second stage - a second and final written warning before the filing of suit at the EU Court. The reasons is that the Bulgarian government still has not submitted to Brussels its project carbon dioxide emissions for 2010, 2015, and 2020.