Hysteria, prompted by expectations for mass "social tourism" of Bulgarians and Romanians after January 1, 2014, is detrimental for everyone, says Bulgarian ambassador to Germany Radi Naydenov.

Naydenov has made the statement in an interview for the German newspaper "Die Welt."

"Those who trail prejudice and use populist arguments harm the European idea and all of us as a whole," explains Naydenov.

The opening of the European labor markets to Bulgarians and Romanians after January 1, 2014 will not be followed by a large wave of immigrants in Germany, the diplomat is categorical.

He adds that both Bulgaria and Germany have met all the requirements for joining the European Union and voices disappointment from the distinction made between immigrants from Bulgaria and those from Southern European countries, currently in crisis.

"Free movement of workers is a fundamental principle of the European Union. Now we have the same rights and obligations that apply to all other Member States. Having stricter rules only for Bulgarians and Romanians is not compatible with the principles of the EU," says the Ambassador.

According to Naydenov, citing German statistics, about 120 thousand Bulgarians currently live in Germany; more than 80% of them have completed high school or university education, while only 0.9% of them receive welfare.

The topic of the expected influx of immigrants, the majority of them Roma, remains very much debated in Britain and in British media.

They write that Bulgarians and Romanians will come to Great Britain precisely because it is the most "profitable" country in the EU.

Labor restrictions for Bulgarians and Romanians in the European Union are going to be lifted on Wednesday, January 1. According to EU accession contracts for the two countries, labor markets of the older Member States had to be opened in no more than seven years after the joining.

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