Bulgaria has described as ungrounded Dutch calls for triggering the safeguard clause, saying it has put in considerable efforts and done lots of progress in the justice and home affairs field.

"Bulgaria has achieved a lot, though there is still a lot of work to be done," Boyko Kotsev, Bulgaria's permanent representative at the European Commission, told journalists in Brussels.

His statement was in response to an open letter by Dutch EU Affairs Minister Frans Timmermans, which was circulated to the media on Wednesday, urging European Justice Commissioner to consider activating the safeguard clauses against Romania and Bulgaria.

The two page letter, dated May 30, proposes a meeting with European Commissioner on Justice, Jacques Barrot to examine the impact of the safeguard measures against Romania and Bulgaria.

This was suggested to take place simultaneously with the publication of the reports about the two country's progress in the justice field, which are expected to be negative.

Moreover, the letter reads that, until now, his government considered that support is better than sanctions but the consequences are tremendous and thus the situation must be treated seriously.

The Dutch minister is part of the Labour Party, affiliated to the European Socialist Party.

The accession treaties of Bulgaria and Romania contain three clauses that provide a legal basis for possible action against them and they apply only until the end of 2009.

The "economic safeguard clause" permits action if either state's entry into the single market has damaged European economic sectors. This clause is unlikely to be invoked because the problems are not primarily economic in nature.

Under the "internal market clause", some EU-funded projects could be halted if, for example, Sofia or Bucharest were deemed not to have complied with public procurement rules. Agricultural subsidies could also be cut or withheld.

The "justice and home affairs clause" lets other states refuse to recognize Bulgarian and Romanian court decisions if they have little confidence in the two countries' judicial systems. In extreme circumstances, EU states could invoke Article 7 of the Treaty on European Union.

This suspends certain rights of a member state if it is judged to be in "serious and persistent breach" of EU principles of liberty, democracy, human rights and the rule of law.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!