site.btaMEP Andrey Kovatchev: Hard to Predict whether Bulgaria Will Be Allowed in Schengen

Approached by journalists here on Wednesday, Bulgarian MEP Andrey Kovatchev (GERB/EPP) said that for 11 years now forecasts have been made on whether Bulgaria will be allowed in Schengen or not, therefore he finds it very hard to predict what decision the Justice and Home Affairs Council will take on December 9. 

In his words, the Czech Presidency of the EU Council is drafting two decisions: one on Croatia and another on Bulgaria and Romania. Bulgaria and Romania cannot be decoupled and will not be decoupled, he underscored. "We hear that the Chancellor of Austria today said his country will not impose a veto. The question mark remains for the Netherlands and Sweden. We are working hard to prevent our accession from getting blocked," Kovatchev said.

According to him, the political situation in Bulgaria cannot be used to prevent the country from joining Schengen because that has no relation to the implementation of the country's obligations.