Croatian President supports Bulgaria for Schengen

There is no political and economic logic for Bulgaria and Romania to be outside Schengen, Bulgaria’s President, Rumen Radev, said on May 25 at a joint statement with his Croatian counterpart Zoran Milanovic, who is on an official visit to Bulgaria.

Radev said that Sofia met all the criteria back in 2011. Momentary fancies and momentary political arguments against our membership undermine the very normative basis of the EU, he said, adding that at every Council meeting he asks the same question - on the basis of what written criteria Bulgaria and Romania are outside Schengen. According to him, this is a loss for Europe and the EU at a time when military mobility and security, the economic crisis and inflation in Europe are being discussed.

Croatian President Milanović said that his country gives its full support to Bulgaria and to Romania, which have been waiting for 12 years. These 12 years, in his words, are 'grave hypocrisy' and injustice. He commented that two countries, one of them Austria, are against Bulgaria's membership and that "individual interests and bargaining in the EU are explained as a big philosophy". According to him, the membership criteria are not transparent but political. He recalled that Croatia had waited seven years for membership after being technically fully ready.

"Let's not kid ourselves. The moment Bulgaria and Romania become Schengen members, transport links from Central Europe to Thessaloniki will become faster and instead of going to Northern Europe, container ships will travel to our region," he added.

Asked by BNT whether October remains a realistic date for joining Schengen and whether Croatia would support the separation of Republic of north Macedonia and Albania in the negotiations with the EU, President Radev said that October is the date he has personally discussed with all European institutions and member states. He reminded that there had been two EC inspections in Bulgaria, which had given excellent results, and that there was no logic to hinder the free movement of goods and capital. According to him, "the various occasions dressed up in arguments about the rule of law will fall away".

On the possible separation of the Republic of North Macedonia from Albania in the negotiations, President Milanovic pointed out that there is such a danger because the RNM has certain conditions it has not fulfilled and if it does not do so, it will not be able to continue together with Albania. He pointed out that if Skopje does not make the constitutional changes and does not include the Bulgarians in its basic law, it will have to wait.

In his opinion, it is rational to do so, as there are certainly Bulgarians in North Macedonia. He gave the example of the Croatian Constitution, which has 7 minorities.

President Rumen Radev reminded that the issue with the Republic of North Macedonia does not rest on our bilateral relations, but on Skopje's attitude towards European values. "This is already a problem of the Republic of North Macedonia’s relations with European values. In the Copenhagen criteria are human rights. Achieving equal rights for Bulgarians in this country by including them in the Constitution together with all other peoples listed as state-forming peoples. This is an irrevocable European requirement, these are European values - this is a European issue," the President said.

The two presidents again strongly condemned Russia's war in Ukraine, as they have since the beginning of the conflict.

"The war in Ukraine has shown the need to expand our cooperation and unity so that we can achieve greater security and stability in the region. Both sides strongly condemned Russian aggression. We reaffirmed our support for Ukraine in its struggle for independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, but the growing risks of this conflict make us insist on an end to the bloody hostilities, because this conflict increases the risks - in addition to a global economic one - of escalating into a global military clash," Rumen Radev said, reminding that war drains our economies and social systems.

President Milanovic reiterated his position that he supports the unity of the EU, but that the war in Ukraine has come about for different reasons. According to him, now all the time "we are repeating incantations and when someone expresses a minimum of scepticism towards the dogma and when it is not for war to final extermination, it comes out that it is for Russia".