The decision of the European Commission not to give Romania an unconditional date for EU entry and clearly distinguish it from Bulgaria comes as a disappointment for Romanians, local press reports show.

"The European Commission chose a compromise solution yesterday, shying away from making a clear distinction between Romania and Bulgaria," Romania's Cotidianul says.

"Romania did not stand out from Bulgaria except between the lines, while the overall impression was that both countries still had serious problems that must be redressed as urgently as possible," the paper complains.

"The serious problems cited for Romania were obviously of a technical nature," it points out.

Curentul newspaper says the EC decision not to fix a clear date for Romania and Bulgaria's EU accession could be viewed as a dramatic failure on the part of the current authorities in Bucharest.

At the beginning of April EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn made for the first time a clear distinction between the two countries, reserving his praise for Romania.

After more hopes in Bucharest and fewer fears in Sofia that the EC would suggest to separate the two countries' bids, that did not happen.

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