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The Netherlands maintains its veto on Bulgaria's Schengen membership

Bulgaria's Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov in Luxembourg, 19 October 2023
Photo: BTA

There is no good reason why Bulgaria's accession to Schengen should not be a fact by the end of the year, said Bulgaria's Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov during the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Luxembourg. He referred to the published report of the European Commission that Bulgaria and Romania have made significant progress in introducing rapid procedures for granting asylum and returning migrants who arrived illegally in the EU. Stoyanov хас emphasized that next week Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov will make a very important visit to Austria on the issue of Schengen.

The Minister for Migration of the Netherlands, Erik van der Burg, stated that it is not likely that The Hague will lift its veto on Bulgaria's admission to the Schengen area in the near future. He again requested an EU commission to arrive in Bulgaria and give an independent assessment of the country's readiness for membership in the Schengen area. 

European Commissioner for Internal Affairs Ylva Johansson told BNR that she was optimistic about the admission of Bulgaria and Romania to Schengen in December.



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