Expats

Bulgaria to Appoint 4 New Envoys Abroad [Mar 28, 2012] Bulgaria's major diplomatic reshuffle is set to continue, as the country's Council of Ministers has suggested the appointment of four new Ambassadors abroad. Career Diplomats Lyubomir Todorov and Georgi Karastamatov will be appointed as heads of the Bulgaria's diplomatic missions in Finland and Armenia respectively. Former Deputy Minister of Economy, Energy and Tourism Maya Hristova has been ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria Sets Analogue Switch-Off Deadline at Sept, 2013 [Mar 06, 2012] The analogue switch-off in Bulgaria has been scheduled to be wrapped up by September 1, 2013, the transport ministry announced. The digital dividend proposals adopted by the European Commission in 2010 asked EU member states to speed up the switch-off of analogue TV and to complete it by 1 January 2012, but Bulgaria failed to meet that deadline. Five countries - Finland, Germany, Luxemburg, the ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria?s Schengen (Corruption) Ordeal and Finland [Dec 09, 2011] One more obstacle on Bulgaria's way to join the Schengen Agreement seemed to vanish in mid-November when Finland officially softened its stance on the country's bid to enter EU's border-free zone. The Nordic country agreed to a compromise phased-in solution proposed by France and Germany, albeit it surely remains in doubt as to whether Bulgaria and Romania are mature enough to join Schengen. The ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria Aspires to Enter Schengen in 2 Stages 2012 - Top Cop [Nov 18, 2011] Bulgaria is working hard on covering the requirements for a phased-in Schengen accession, the country's Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov told reporters in Finland on Thursday. "All Schengen entry requirements are being fulfilled despite the harsh economic and political conditions,"Tsvetanov declared during his Helsinki visit. Tsvetanov revealed that the Bulgarian government has allocated ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria's Top Diplomat Hails Finland's Stand on Schengen [Nov 16, 2011] Bulgaria's Foreign Affairs Minister, Nikolay Mladenov, has extended accolades to Finland's new position on the country's Schengen accession. Mladenov said Sofia is applauding the news and voices certainty the change came through a careful analysis of achievements of both Bulgaria and Romania in securing border control. "This is a great development for us.... [via YahooNews] More >>

Netherlands Unwavering in Not Letting Bulgaria in Schengen [Nov 15, 2011] The Netherlands is not going to change its position on Bulgaria's and Romania's joining of the Schengen zone, according to a Dutch Interior Ministry spokesperson, speaking for the Bulgarian National Radio. The statement comes on the heels of reports that Finland has softened its position on Bulgaria and Romania's Schengen accession. The Nordic country is now in favor of the EU opening its air ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria Parliament Chair: Schengen Snub Smacks of EU Double Standards [Sep 24, 2011] EU member states must take into account that Bulgaria has fullfilled all technical requirements for entry into the Schengen Area and accordingly admit it, stated Bulgarian Parliament Spaker Tsetska Tsacheva Saturday. Thursday the EU Council for Home Affairs did not offer Schengen membership for Bulgaria and Romania, after vetoes were posed by the Netherlands and Finland, who voiced worries about ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria FM Blames Schengen Fiasco on Dutch, Finnish Domestic Politics, Predecessors [Sep 24, 2011] The postponement of Bulgaria and Romania's accession to Schengen is due to domestic politics in the Netherlands and Finland, as well as to the sloppy work of previous Bulgarian governments, according to Bulgarian Foreign Affairs Minister Nikolay Mladenov. Thursday the EU Council for Home Affairs decided to put off the membership of the two countries in the free movement area due to vetoes by the ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Romania and Bulgaria Are Denied Entry to Schengen Zone [Sep 23, 2011] Finland and the Netherlands objected to admitting Romania and Bulgaria to the European Union?s passport-free travel zone, citing concerns over anticorruption and organized crime. [via YahooNews] More >>

Romania and Bulgaria Are Denied Entry to Schengen Zone [Sep 23, 2011] Finland and the Netherlands objected to admitting Romania and Bulgaria to the European Union?s passport-free travel zone, citing concerns over anticorruption and organized crime. [via YahooNews] More >>

Europe leaves Bulgaria, Romania out in Schengen cold [Sep 22, 2011] Europe left Bulgaria and Romania out in the cold Thursday, when Finland and the Netherlands blocked their entry into the passport-free Schengen travel area. [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria, Romania's Schengen Applications Formally Vetoed [Sep 22, 2011] The Netherlands and Finland have expectedly vetoed the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the visa-free Schengen Area at the meeting of the EU Interior Ministers in Brussels. The Netherlands formally decided to veto Bulgaria and Romania's Schengen accession at the end of last week, and Finland did so on Wednesday. The vetoes on the Schengen Agreement bids of the two Balkan states have been ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria, Romania to Be Turned Down for Schengen - Report [Sep 21, 2011] The applications of Bulgaria and Romania to join the visa-free Schengen Area will be turned down by the EU/Schengen Interior Ministers on Thursday, September 22, according to diplomatic sources. After the Netherlands formally decided to veto Bulgaria and Romania's Schengen accession at the end of last week, and Finland did so on Wednesday, diplomatic sources have been cited by international ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria's GDP per Capita Expectedly Lowest in EU [Jun 21, 2011] Bulgaria's GDP per capita expressed in Purchasing Power Standards is 57% below the EU 27 average, according to Eurostat's preliminary data for 2010. In Spain, Italy and Cyprus, GDP per capita was around the EU27 average, while in France it was around 5% above the average. Germany, Belgium, Finland and the United Kingdom were between 10% and 20% above the average, while Denmark, Ireland, Austria ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Finnish Minister: Bulgaria, Romania to Enter Schengen Side by Side [Feb 09, 2011] Bulgaria and Romania are not likely to join the Schengen Agreement seperately, Finland's Migration and European Affairs Minister Astrid Thors said in an exclusive interview for Novinite. com (Sofia News Agency.) ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria, Romania Await Finland Nay-Sayer to Schengen Hopes [Feb 03, 2011] Finland's minister of immigration and European affairs, who opposed last month Bulgaria and Romania's accession to the Schengen zone, will pay a visit to the two countries next week. Astrid Thors will visit Bucharest on 6-7 February and Sofia on 7-8 February, the Finnish government announced. In Bucharest, Minister Thors will meet the Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Teodor Baconschi, and ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Romania Foreign Minister: Only Bulgaria Failed Schengen Test [Jan 17, 2011] France, Germany and Finland have expressed their concerns towards Bulgaria 's Schengen readiness, while the report on Romania has not shown any irregularities, Baconschi has pointed out before Romanian pundits. [via YahooNews] More >>

Fininish Ambassador Tarya Laitiainen : Fighting Corruption Crucial for Bulgaria's Schengen Entry [Dec 10, 2010] On December 6 1917 Finland was declared an independent state - a day still celebrated as this state's national holiday. Back then, this country was struggling with poverty. [via YahooNews] More >>

Rally Bulgaria Results [Jul 09, 2010] SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) -- Results Friday from the first day of the Rally Bulgaria, the seventh round of the World Rally Championship (with driver, country, car and time): After 4 of 14 stages 1. Sebastien Loeb, France, Citroen, 1 hour, 5 minutes, 26.7 seconds. 2. Dani Sordo, Spain, Citroen, 1:05:54.8 3. Petter Solberg, Norway, Citroen, 1:06:04.7 4. Mikko Hirvonen, Finland, Ford Focus, 1:06:37.6 5 ... [via YahooNews] More >>

Bulgaria Rally: Red Bull preview [Jul 06, 2010] In Finland, the national sport is rallying. In Bulgaria, the latest stop on the World Rally Championship tour, the national sport is...wrestling. Two of Bulgaria's biggest sporting heroes were wrestlers: Dan Kolov and Nikola Petrov. [via YahooNews] More >>