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Today's Quote "The Mayor's participation in the events from the last couple of days is simply political speculation escalating the situation and surpassing all limits of reasonable politics... Borisov's pathetic whining from this morning is ridiculous. I was making tours of the blasts' location until 11:30 pm last night and did not see anything significant except the reeking bales of Borsiov's trash." Bulgaria's Interior Minister Mihail Mikov made this statement in connection to Sofia's Mayor Boyko Borisov's appearances before the media and his negative comments about the Cabinet's reaction to the Thursday's explosions at the military munitions storage facilities near Sofia. At the end Mikov refers to the waste storage sites located close to the Chelopechene quarter. Barometer Free Fireworks - Welcome to Sofia By Ivan Dikov If you were woken up by violent explosions early Thursday morning, chances are you are not in the Gaza Strip, Baghdad's Sadr City, or Chechnya, but in one of the EU capitals. | read |

The Week in Pictures Gunpowder Explosions Shake Bulgaria Capital Sofia Sofia Mayor: Emergency Minister Was Probably Hiding or Visiting Hairdresser Defense Minister Assumes Responsibility for Delaying Explosion Information Sofia Airport Reopens After 12 Hours CSKA President Tomov Charged With Embezzlement Bulgaria Govt to Build Residential Quarter for Young Bulgarian Scientists First Sand Figures Festival Opens in Bulgaria's Burgas Suicidal Young Woman Rescued in Sofia

France President Sarkozy Lends Support to Bulgaria Security Agency

The French President Nicola Sarkozy is going send one of his advisors to aid the work of Bulgaria's State National Security Agency.

This was agreed on Friday during Sarkozy's meeting with the Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev in Paris.

The Director of Bulgaria's State National Security Agency (abbreviated as DANS in Bulgarian) Petko Sertov was also present at the high-level meeting. Early in his career Sertov specialized in the French secret service.

The French support for Bulgaria's DANS, which was established in December 2007 and is directly subordinate to the Prime Minister, comes only two weeks after Stanishev's visit to the USA, where he thanked the US government for the American aid for setting up of the new institution.

During the meeting Sarkozy said that France, which assumed the rotational EU Presidency on July 1, appreciated the efforts of the government to carry out reforms in the interior and justice sector.

"Be the prudent and modern voice of Central and Eastern Europe. We need Bulgaria in order to solve Europe's problems", the French President stated.

The two leaders also made a new agreement on the so called "corvette deal", which was made during Sarkozy's visit to Sofia in October 2007.

Instead of purchasing four French-made corvettes, Bulgaria will now buy only two of the military ships. The corvettes are expected to cost EUR 400 M (the original price of the four ships exceeded EUR 1 B).

The deal for the corvettes had to be renegotiated after it became clear that the Bulgarian budget could not afford to pay the enormous sum.

Bulgaria's PM and the French President also sign an Agreement for Strategic Partnership stipulating partnership in fields such as the EU, economy, defense and armament, security, immigration, culture, education and science.

BG in EU Finland Ambassador Announces Violations in Bulgaria's PHARE Payments Finland's Ambassador to Sofia Kauko Jamsen announced Friday some of the PHARE Program payments under Measure 1 for small and medium-sized firms had been delayed for two years. | read |

Sofia Warehouse Blasts Bulgaria Commandos Suspect Warehouse Blasts Were Caused on Purpose The Union of Bulgarian Commandos issued Friday a declaration stating its members believed that Thursday's explosions at a military warehouse in Sofia's Chelopechene Quarter had been caused deliberately. | read |

· New CEO of Bulgaria's State Agriculture Fund Appointed · Bulgaria Army Deputy Chief of Staff Resigns over Chelopechene Incident

· Three Most Sacred Bulgarian Icons Are On Display in Sofia · Bulgaria Steel Mill Kremikovtzi Signs Contract With ArcelorMittal

2218 New Residential Buildings Constructed in Bulgaria in 2007

A total of 2218 new apartment buildings were built in Bulgaria according to data provided by the National Statistical Institute.

The Black Sea port cities of Varna and Burgas lead in the number of new residential buildings with 508 and 451 respectively.

The capital Sofia ranks third with 193 new apartment buildings, whereas the second largest city Plovdiv has 176.

The new construction has brought 18 204 new apartments, increasing the total number of homes in the country to 3 746 758. Of these 2 372 522 are in the cities and towns (527 916 in the capital Sofia), and 1 374 236 are located in the villages.

According to the NSI, the average number of people per one home is 2,04 (down from 2,06 in 2006). The average residential area per person is 20,13 square meters, with 17,72 square meters in the cities and towns, and 25,96 in the villages.

Bulgaria Steel Mill Kremikovtzi Signs Contract With ArcelorMittal

Bulgaria's largest steel mill Kremikovtzi signed a contract Friday for the production of steel from all raw materials supplied by "ArcelorMittal".

The production is going to be realized by the steel mill as part of the agreement. The contract also provides an obligation for investments in ecology installations and assistance when repairs of the mill equipment become necessary.

In the beginning "Kremikovtzi" is going to produce around 60,000 tons of steel per month with this amount slated to increase with time along with the introduction of technology improvements.

Thursday, "ArcelorMittal's" Operational Director first mentioned the possibility for the signing of such contract qualifying it as an act of offering assistance to the steel mill while insolvency procedures are going on and until the ownership over the shares is being transferred.

Oil Rises to Record above USD 145

World oil prices soared to yet another record high in Thursday's trading and settled above USD 145 a barrel for the first time after a rising dollar did not ease much of the investors' concern about supplies.

Light crude for August delivery settled at a new record of 145.29 dollars a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. In the early morning electronic trading the contract hit an all-time peak of 145.85 dollars a barrel.

The price of oil was believed to have been driven by Wednesday's report of a drop in the US crude stockpiles and the lingering concerns about tension in the Middle East.

Fewer Scandinavian Tourists Visit Bulgaria Due to Bad Service

The ambassadors of Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden announced Wednesday that the number of Scandinavians tourists visiting Bulgaria had declined because of the bad service and safety issues in Bulgarian resorts.

The Scandinavian ambassadors alarmed the Deputy Foreign Minister Milen Keremedchiev and the Deputy Chair of the State Tourism Agency Stela Baltova about the situation during a special meeting, which took place on Wednesday.

According to data of the Tourism Investors' Union, the number of Scandinavian tourists visiting Bulgaria has dropped 50% on annual basis.

The main cause of the decline is the murder of a Swedish citizen in the Sunny Beach resort in 2007, which was followed by outrage in the media in the Scandinavian states.

The ambassadors of Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden informed the Bulgarian Deputy Foreign Minister of specific cases of violating the rights of the citizens of their countries.

Keremedchiev promised to meet with the Chief Secretary of the Interior Ministry and with prosecutors in order to inspect the cases, and to report back on them in October.

In 2007 Bulgaria was visited by 104 000 Swedes (1,4% of all foreign tourists according to the State Tourism Agency), 88 500 Danes, 78 000 Norwegians, and 76 000 Finns.

The measures for improving the safety of the foreign tourists include a special meeting with the Interior Minister Mihail Mikov.

After the Head of the State Tourism Agency Aneliya Krushkova predicted in May that the number of foreign tourists in 2008 would grow by 7-8%, at the end of June this prognosis turned out to be wrong as the Sunny Beach resort is reported to be half empty.

Bulgaria Sea Resort Opens Ice Skating Rink

Bulgarian Sea Resort "Albena" now has a brand new ice skating ring, just meters away form the sea.

The rink is located in front of the "Laguna Beach" hotel over on area of 300 square meters. The rink is an indoor one and its dimensions are 15 X 20 meters.

The idea for an ice skating rink was first mentioned two years ago when the Resort's Management announced their investment plan. At the time they explained that the rink was to be built with the goal of attracting tourists to the resort during the winter as well.

The rink is going to be officially opened Saturday when "Albena" expects the arrival of the internationally renowned Russian ballet "Todes".

The rink has been already used for training sessions of Russian children practicing figure skating.

ECB Raises Interest Rates to 4,25%

The European Central Bank (ECB) raised its key interest rate Thursday by a quarter of a percentage point to 4.25% in order to tame rising inflation.

The central bank's first interest-rate move in over a year, was flagged by ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet after policy makers' meeting last month, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Inflation across the European Union rose to 4% in the year to June, the highest since official records began in January 1997 and double the ECB's preferred range of just below 2%.

Reiffeisen Named Bulgaria's Bank of the Year 2007

Reiffeisen was declared Bulgaria's Bank of The Year for 2007 in a traditional contest, organized by the prestigious local financial Pari Daily.

This is the eleventh time that the newspaper selects Bank of the Year in an effort to encourage the financial institutions to work for the progress of Bulgaria's economy.

Pireos Bank reaped the prize for dynamic development, while Uni Credit Bank won the Market Share award.

In the same contest, the United Bulgarian Bank was distinguished as the most efficient.

The criteria for selecting the nominees in the prestigious contest are traditionally based on the dynamic and efficient development of the banks as financial intermediaries.

Bulgaria Anti-Trust Committee Approves Purchase of Two Wind Parks

Bulgaria's Committee for the Protection of Competition approved Wednesday the purchase of the two wind parks at the northeast town of Kavarna by the Austrian company Reiffeisen Energy & Environment GmbH.

According to the ruling of the Committee, the concentration of the two winds parks into the hands of one company would have an insignificant effect on the wind energy market, and would harm the competition in the sector.

The REE company is part of the Reiffeisen Bank economic group, which specializes in the development of energy production including from renewable energy sources.

With its acquisition of the Wind Park Kavarna West Ltd, and Wind Park Kavarna East Ltd, the Austrian firm wants to establish itself in the Bulgarian energy market.

EUR 50 M Invested in New Ski Resort in Bulgaria Rhodoppe Mountain

A new ski resort for over EUR 50 M will be built close to the town of Chepelare in Bulgaria's Rhodoppe Mountain.

The new Mechi Chal resort will serve to turn the small mountain town in an international center for winters sports and mountain tourism.

Its name Mechi Chal comes from the name of the Chala area, where the complex will be located.

The construction of the new complex will take place in three phases over the next five years. The first phase will be completed by the end of 2008, and includes the renovation of an existing ski lift, the construction of a new, 2,7-km long lift, and of a new 3,5-km long ski track with facilities for artificial snow.

The second phase of the project will be completed in 2009-2011. It provides for the construction of a sports center in the town of Chepelare, and another 3-km long lift.

The third phase includes the opening of summer vacation facilities and a resort village.

"This is one of the first projects in the country, which will be realized through an equal partnership between the Chepelare Municipality and the business investors", the Chepelare Mayor Georgi Popov.

The first sod of the new resort will be turned on Saturday during a formal ceremony, which will be attended by the Deputy PM Meglena Plugchieva, the Minister of Culture Stefan Danailov, the Economy Minister Petar Dimitrov, and the Director of the State Forestry Agency Stefan Yurukov.

Euromoney: UniCredit Bulbank is Best in Bulgaria

UniCredit Bulbank has been declared the best bank in Bulgaria for a second consecutive year by the Euromoney magazine.

The bank is said to be the undisputed banking heavyweight champion in Bulgaria as it is boasting huge assets. UniCredit Bulbank has about a million of clients and being in alliance with various UniCredit subsidiaries it easily claimed the top place in the chart of financial service providers, the magazine states.

The net profit of the credit institution for 2007 is said to be BGN 255,2 M, which presents an increase of 90 percent.

Bulgaria Air Traffic Authority Receives International Standards Certificate

The Bulgarian State Enterprise "Air Traffic Service Authority" received Wednesday a certificate for adherence to international standards, quality air navigation services, direction of air traffic and employee training.

The certificate is seen as evidence that the State Enterprise services entirely correspond to the European Commission's standards.

The Enterprise's leadership had prepared its own policy for better effectiveness aligned with Brussels's idea to create a "united European sky" where air travel safety is seen as number one priority.

The certificate was received by Emanuil Radev, Director of "Air Traffic Service Authority."

Bulgaria's Transportation Minister Petar Mutafchiev was also present at the ceremony. According to the Minister the document was proof of the security and safety of Bulgarian air travel.

Mutafchiev also stated that he was expecting that the EC would lift the safeguard clause for the Bulgarian aviation in the very near future, without committing to a fixed deadline.

Sale of Navigation Maritime Bulgare Approved by Privatization Agency

The Supervisory Council of the Bulgarian State Privatization Agency approved Wednesday the sale of 70% of the Navigation Maritime Bulgare.

In mid May the Agency and the buyer, the Bulgarian-German consortium KG Maritime Shipping, signed the agreement of the sale of the state-owned company for a total of BGN 440,1 M.

30% of the KG Maritime Shipping Company belongs to the Bulgarian firm Advance Properties of the brothers Kiril and Georgi Domuschiev, who own the Biovet Peshera Pharmaceutical plant and have investments in real estate. The rest of the company is owned by the German KG Maritime Partners.

According to the state strategy for the privatization of Navigation Maritime Bulgare, the remaining 30% of the company would be offered for sale to the buying of the majority share after five years on the condition that the owner had fulfilled its investment program and has not broken the privatization contract.

KG Maritime Shipping's program envisages the investment of BGN 779 M for the next ten years, and an average annual increase of 15% of the salaries of the employees.

The consortium has committed to maintain a staff of 2851 persons for Navigation Maritime Bulgare in the first year, 2594 persons for the second year, and 2360 persons between the third and the tenth year of its program.

The buyer also plans to acquire 25 new ships in order to replace older with newer and bigger ones.

The Bulgarian-German consortium was the only bidder allowed to the final stage of the tender for the sale of Navigation Maritime Bulgare.

Bulgaria Devt Minister: Construction of Trakiya Highway to Restart in September

Bulgaria's Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Asen Gagauzov announced Tuesday that the construction of the remaining stretch of the Trakiya Highway was to start in September.

The tender for picking an executer of the project is expected to be declared by the middle of July, according to Gagauzov.

The Minister said the funds for the highway would be provided by the state budget.

"We need to show Brussels there is no abuse of funds - EU of Bulgarian state budget funds", Gagauzov said.

He predicted that "good results" with respect to the unfreezing of the blocked EU funding was expected within a month thanks to the efforts to improve the organization of the Republican Road Infrastructure Fund - Bulgaria's road agency, which was shaken by corruption scandals in the spring.

Earlier on Tuesday, Minister Gagauzov together with the Transport Minister Petar Mutafchiev and the owner of the Patisha JSC Georgi Gergov cut the ribbon of the new traffic circle and beltway of the city of Pazardzhik.

The traffic circle was built in order to make the roads intersection more secure as many car accidents have happened there.

Bulgaria Ranks 44th Best Country for Business - Report

Bulgaria ranks 44th among the best countries for doing business, according to the US "Forbes" magazine, while Romania takes the 40th place, Turkey is the 41st followed by Croatia and Greece takes the 53rd place.

Only one country from the former Communist block - Estonia has ranked among the top 10. Estonia joined the European Union in 2004.

Denmark is number one on the list of best countries for business and has improved its ranking by moving up thee places compared to 2007.

Ireland, however, improved its ranking by 19 places and currently ranks second in the list. Finland is third.

The USA lost their third position and are now taking the fourth place.

The remaining top ten include Great Britain (5), Sweden (7), Canada (8), Singapore (9) and Estonia.

From the bigger EU countries, Germany is 21st while France is 25th.

Due to political instability, high inflation rates, obstacles for investors, countries with fast developing economies such as India and China have moved back on the list with India losing 13 places and now being 64th and China loosing 2 and ranking 79th.

On of the biggest drops is Japan loosing 21 places to currently rank 24th. Reasons cited were problems announced by the Committee for Economy and Finance Policies among them the 40% corporate tax. The tax makes Japan less competitive than countries from the region such as Hong Kong where corporative tax is 17,5% and South Korea with 25%

Bulgaria Ranks Second in EU in Unemployment Decline

Bulgaria is the second country in the EU with the greatest decline in unemployment over the last year, according to EUROSTAT data cited by the Bulgarian National Radio.

In the last year the number of employed in Bulgaria has gone down from 7% to 5,7%. According to the EUROSTAT ranking, Poland is the only EU country doing better in this respect.

The average unemployment rate for the whole EU-27 is 6,8% with Denmark and the Netherlands having the lowest figures, and Slovakia and Spain - the highest.

The youth unemployment is reported to be a serious problem with a 15% youth unemployment rate for the EU-27. Women's unemployment is found to be higher than men's.

Bulgaria Company to Destroy 1,6 Million Mines of Greece Army

The Bulgarian company Bideks has been selected by the Greek Army to destroy about 1,6 million mines located in 26 military bases around the country.

The Greek newspaper Elefteros Tipos announced Monday that the contract for the neutralizing of the mines was signed last Wednesday.

The Bulgarian company is supposed to destroy all mines within one year. The procedure for the transportation of the mines to Bulgaria is expected to start in the coming weeks after all necessary safety certificates of NATO and the EU have been issued.

A total of nine firms from Italy, Israel, and Bulgaria had submitted bids for the destruction of the mines of the Greek Army.

ABB Invests USD 20 M in New Factory in Bulgaria's Plovdiv

The Swedish-Swiss-German concern ABB is investing USD 20 M in the construction of a new factory for low voltage automation and power products located in the Rakovski Industrial Zone close to the city of Plovdiv.

The ABB Manager for Central and Eastern Europe Peter Smiths, who turned the first sod of the new factory on Tuesday, announced that the plant was expended to start work on March 20, 2009, and to employ 500 persons.

He said also that this would be ABB's third factory in Bulgaria in addition to the other two located in the town of Sevlievo, and the town of Petrich. The new plant will be located on a plot of 20 000 square meters.

All of the production of the new factory will be exported. The plant will be constructed by the Plovdiv company Sienit Single Person Ltd, which is one of the co-owners of the Rakovski Industrial Zone. Some 50 to 80 workers will be employed for the construction.

The ABB (Asea Brown Boveri) is a multinational corporation based in Zurich, Switzerland, and specializing in the production of power and automation technology. It is one of the largest engineering companies, and conglomerates in the world.

United Bulgarian Bank Registers Gross Profit of BGN 206 M in 2007

The gross profit of the United Bulgarian Bank for 2007 before paying taxes amounts to BGN 205,7 M, the bank press service announced on Monday.

In comparison to 2006, the bank's profit has gone up by 29,7%, or BGN 47,1 M.

The assembly of the shareholders of the UBB has decided that the 2007 net profit amounting to BGN 185 M would be distributed to the reserve funds of the bank for.

The main shareholder of the UBB - the National Bank of Greece - is taking this measure for the fourth year in a row. It is reinvesting the whole profit of the bank in its capital in order to provide it with a capital base for market growth.

The UBB has also registered a 54,7%-growth of its assets, which reached BGN 6,1 B. Over 80% of these are credits for corporate clients and citizens.

The banks also announced that in 2007 it had achieved a Return on Average Equity of 28,6%, and a Return on Average Assets of 3,9%. Its efficiency ratio is 37,8%.

Bulgaria Competition Agency Approves Energy Holding Consolidation

Bulgaria's Committee for Protection of Competition approved Tuesday the government's plan to merge the country's five largest state-owned energy companies.

According to the anti-trust committee, the merging of the companies is internal restructuring of state-owned enterprises.

The Bulgarian government has notified the Committee that each of the five companies would keep their independence after the merger - i.e. each of them would reserve the opportunity to determine their own behavior on the energy market.

Each of the companies is also going to develop strategies of its own for the achievement of the goals of the holding.

By the end of 2008 the Bulgarian government is planning to execute the merger of the National Electric Company NEK, the gas monopoly Bulgargaz, the Maritza Iztok Mines, the Maritza Iztok 2 Thermal Plant, and the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant into a EUR 4-B energy giant.

Credit Consultants' Association Set up in Bulgaria

Leading companies in the credit sector founded Monday an Association of Credit Consultants in Bulgaria (ACCB).

The requirements for new companies applying to join the Association are: at least one-year experience in the market, signed contracts with at least eight banks, and credit consulting as the main subject of activity of the respective company.

The main goals of the ACCB are to promote credit consulting and its benefits, to lobby for the adoption of the respective legislation, and to set up a licensing regime for this type of activity.

"This is the next step in establishing this business model in Bulgaria, and bringing it to the level of the best world practices. We, the founders of the Association, represent 80% of the Bulgarian credit consulting market", Tohomir Toshev from the Governing of Board of the ACCB said.

According to data of the ACCB, only 6% of the credit consumers in Bulgaria use credit consulting services compared to 40% for Central and Eastern Europe, and 90% for the USA.

Another indicator for Bulgaria's credit consulting market is the ratio of mortgage credits to the GDP. The figure for Bulgaria is 10,42% in 2007, compared to 12% for Poland and Slovakia, and 80% for the UK.

Bulgaria to Export Four Times More Electricity in 2030 - Report

Bulgaria's present electricity exports of 4,5 B kWh might increase four times to reach 18 B kWh in 2030.

This becomes clear from the online publication of the report of the Energy and Economy Minister Petar Dimitrov that he presented at the Consultative National Security Council on energy policy last week.

The increase in electricity exports in Dimitrov's report is mainly the result of the construction of the Belene Nuclear Power Plant, where two 1000-MW reactors will be built at first.

Belene is expected to start producing electricity in 2014-15. The Minister's report points out, however, that in case two more 1000-MW reactors were constructed at the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant, where currently only two 1000-MW units function, the country's annual electricity exports might even reach 33 B kWh in 2030.

Before the closing down of the two 440-MW reactors of the Kozloduy NPP in 2006 Bulgaria reached the record 9 B kWh of electricity exports, which completely met the demand in the region.

In 2007 the exports dropped in half - 4,5 B kWh, with 2,3 kWh of electricity transited across Bulgaria from third countries.

Meeting of Vienna Economic Forum Starts in Bulgaria City of Pleven

Representatives of over twenty Austrian companies and mayors of thirty Bulgarian municipalities attended Monday the meeting of the Vienna Economic Forum, which took place in the northern Bulgarian city of Pleven.

The main topics of the event are the problems of transport, infrastructure, waste management, and water supply of Bulgarian municipalities.

The President of the Vienna Economic Forum Erhard Busek is also present at the meeting in Pleven.

"We are glad that Bulgaria is a member of the EU since 2007. This means not only many obligations but also many opportunities", Busek said adding that the aim of the forum was make constructive proposals for improving the absorption of EU funds.

He pointed out that the Vienna Economic Forum provided the opportunity to use the experience of many partners in order to improve the local situation.

The meeting in Pleven is part of the events marking the fifth year since the founding of the Vienna Economic Forum. Pleven has been selected to host it because it presented a number of problems typical for both large cities and small towns, the Secretary-General of the Forum Elena Kircheva explained.

The Vienna Economic Forum aims to promote the economic cooperation between the countries from the Adriatic to the Black Sea - Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and Turkey from its Headquarters in Vienna.

Romanians Buy out Bulgarian Cement

More and more Romanians are constructing and repairing their apartments with Bulgarian-made cement as the demand for it on the northern side of the Danube River has increased tremendously over the recent weeks.

Each day ten trucks loaded with cement leave the Bulgarian city of Ruse for Romania. A 50-kg bag of cement costs BGN 10-12, whereas its price in Romania in about BGN 50.

Cement turns out to be last hit among the thousands of Romanian merchants and citizens shopping for goods in Bulgaria after their demand initially concentrated on groceries, clothes, and shoes.


Interior Minister: Sofia's Mayor Pathetic Whining Is Ridiculous

Bulgaria's Interior Minister Mihail Mikov declined Friday to make any comments on the hypotheses about the causes of Thursday's blasts in the military storage facilities near Sofia

He did comment, however, on Sofia Mayor Boyko Borisov's role in the events.

"The Mayor's participation in the events from the last couple of days is simply a political speculation escalating the situation and surpassing all limits of reasonable politics." Mikov stated.

When asked if he had allowed access of public transportation to Chelopechene, Mikov replied that the Mayor's pains were not the Interior Ministry's business, adding that Borisov needed to read the Laws.

"Borisov's pathetic whining from this morning is ridiculous. I was making tours of the blasts' location until 11:30 pm last night and did not see anything significant except the reeking piles of Borsiov's bales of trash," Mikov further added referring to the waste storage facilities located near the spot of the accident.

The Interior Minister also explained that there had not been any thefts from the homes of the people evacuated from the incident's location.

Mikov spoke before the Parliament Friday during a ceremony, in which he awarded four traffic policemen who had refused to take bribes in the amounts of EUR 2,000 to 10,000.

Bulgaria to Train Albanian Specialist from Durres and Vlora Ports

Bulgaria's Transport Ministry announced Friday that the first phase of its program to train Albanian specialists in the field of sea transport and port management would start in September.

The program was negotiated during the third meeting of the Bulgarian-Albanian Transport Committee, which took place in Sofia on July 1-4.

The training of the Albanian specialists will include transfer of technologies and exchange of management experience.

The two sides also have agreed that the Bulgarian ports of Varna and Burgas would publish on their websites real-time information about the Albanian ports Durres and Vlora.

The Bulgarian transport authorities are going to aid their Albanian counterparts in changing their transport legislation in accordance with the EU standards.

Bulgaria Army Deputy Chief of Staff Resigns over Chelopechene Incident

The Defense Council at Bulgaria's Defense Ministry accepted the resignation of the Deputy Chief of Staff for the Army Resources General-Lieutenant Rumen Tsokov, as announced by the Defense Minister Nikolay Tsonev.

General Tsokov has assumed the responsibility for the Chelopechene incident. However, Minister Tsonev pointed out that the resignation did not mean that the reasons for the blast were known.

"These reasons can be established only through a thorough investigation, which cannot start until Monday, at the earliest," Tsonev said.

The Defense Council has decided to create a Commission to investigate the causes of the explosions.

Tsonev explained that there had been two blasts on Friday - one at 5:40 am and a second, very week one, at 2 pm.

New CEO of Bulgaria's State Agriculture Fund Appointed

Bulgaria's Agricultural Minister introduced Friday the new CEO of the Bulgarian Agriculture State Fund.

The Fund's new Director is Atanas Kunchev, who was until now Deputy Finance Minister.

At a meeting Thursday, the Fund's Managing Board decided to release Vladimir Karamichev as Deputy CEO of the Fund. A new Deputy CEO has not been nominated yet. The other Deputy - Alizan Yaova is going to fulfill both duties until Karamichev's replacement is elected.

The Agricultural Minister is also presenting Friday the Cabinet's actions in response to the EU funds from the SAPPARD program that have been put on hold.

Bulgarian State Agriculture Fund CEO, Dimitar Tadarakov, resigned Wednesday after a little more than a year in office.

During an extraordinary press conference Tadarakov declared that he was resigning "on moral grounds", adding that no political pressure had been exerted upon him.

Tadarakov stated that he felt absolutely no guilt over SAPARD funds since possible misappropriation in the Agriculture Fund were committed years before he came into office.

Payment of over BGN 270 M for agricultural projects was put on hold by the EC during Tadarakov's term in office.

On June 1, following the EC audit, Tadarakov prematurely stated that audit results will lead to the immediate release of the funds, something that proved untrue and is largely seen as the reason behind Tadarakov' resignation.

Bulgaria PM Stanishev Meets President Sarkozy in France

Bulgaria's Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev is on an official working visit in Paris Friday.

Stanishev is meeting with French President Nicolas Sarkozy at the Elysian Palace.

Stanishev and Sarkozy are discussing cooperation between the two countries and their European Union relations.

Bulgaria's Premier and the French President are going to sign an Agreement for Strategic Partnership. The Agreement includes partnership within the EU, partnership in the areas of economy, defense and armament, security, immigration, culture, education and science.

Court Rejects Bulgaria PM's Claim against Bansko Mayor

The Supreme Administrative Court rejected Wednesday the claim of Bulgaria's Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev brought against the mayor of the resort town of Bansko Alexander Kravarov.

The premier demanded that Kravarov should be dismissed as he is a member of the managing board of a municipal trade association.

The complaint against the mayor, who is now in his third term on the post, has been previously rejected by the Administrative Court in the town of Blagoevgrad.

US Secretary of State Rice to Visit Sofia - Report

The US Secretary of State and right-hand person of US President George W. Bush Condoleeza Rice is going to be in Sofia on July 9, as reported by the Bulgarian daily newspaper "Standard News".

The news came as big surprise for the Bulgarian Security Services, according to "Standard", creating panic at the Interior Ministry, the State Security Agency and the National Protection Services and triggering numerous emergency meetings.

US special Secret Services' teams would be arriving in Sofia three days before Rice's visit to help Bulgarian Security Services provide the Secretary of State's safety.

Condoleeza Rice would spend only 5 hours in Sofia and would go straight from the airport to the office of Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev.

According to "Standard" Rice is to advise Stanishev on the fight against corruption and organized crime just weeks before the expected publication of the EC report about Bulgaria. Rice is meeting with Stanishev less then a month after the Bulgarian PM's visit to the US and his meeting with George W. Bush.

After the conclusion of the meeting between Stanishev and Rice, she would receive Bulgaria's highest order "Stara Planina", 1st Degree. The order would be presented by Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov at an official ceremony. It is awarded to Rice for her contribution to the fight for the liberation of the Bulgarian medics jailed in Libya and for her support for Bulgaria's NATO membership.

The visit to Sofia has been included in Rice's agenda at the last minute. She is scheduled to visit Prague on July 8 to sign a contract with her Czech colleague for the deployment of a US radar installation in the Czech Republic. After Prague, Rice is supposed to go to Poland to sign an agreement for the deployment in Poland of US anti-missile interceptor rockets. At the last minute, the 5 hours between the two visits have been booked for Sofia.

Bulgaria Govt to Build Residential Quarter for Young Bulgarian Scientists

The Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev announced Wednesday that the government was going to build a special residential quarter for young scientists from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences.

Stanishev made the announcement during his visit to one of the BAS Institutes, where he went together with the Minister of Education Daniel Vulchev.

"The government also discussed another initiative - awarding the Bulgarian academicians for life the same remuneration that the Bulgarian Members of Parliament receive", the PM said adding that the new academicians' quarter will also have a kindergarten.

The Education Minister Daniel Vulchev explained that the construction of the new residential quarter would start by the end of 2008. He also said it would have at least 250 apartments, and would cost about BGN 15 M.

Vulchev also said the apartments would never be sold but would only be rented at a reasonable price.

The new quarter is to be located at the 8th km of the Tsarigradsko Shose Blvd.

With respect to the idea of awarding the Bulgarian academicians for life the same remuneration that the MPs receive, the newly elected BAS Director Nikola Sabotinov said there were only 50 persons in Bulgaria with the highest scientific title, and that the annual sum for awarding them would not be more than BGN 2 M.

Businessman Hristo Kovachki: Boyko Borisov Could Logically Become PM

The Bulgarian businessman and informal leader of the LIDER party Hristo Kovachki said Wednesday in an interview for the bTV Channel that the Sofia Mayor Boyko Borisov could logically become the country's next Prime Minister.

Kovachki was positive that if Borisov's GERB party was the most popular political party, and got the greatest number of votes, it would only be logical if its leader led Bulgaria's next government.

The businessman added, however, that it was Sofia Mayor's personal decision whether he would assume such a responsibility if GERB won next year's elections.

In his interview the informal leader of the LIDER party emphasized his conviction that Bulgaria needed rightist or center-right government.

He pointed out to a possible unification of the rightist parties around the LIDER-VMRO-Agrarian People's Union coalition, which is still in the making.

The businessman disproved any allegations that he personally and his party LIDER had any connections with ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms party and its leader Ahmed Dogan.

Kovachki related his vision of a center-right government of the country to the need to boost its economic development. He stressed that only an export-oriented economy would help Bulgaria to withstand the negative effects of the global economic crisis.

He pointed out that the Bulgarian national, business, and politics needed serious consolidation and efforts to tackle the issues bringing division.

"It is more honest to enter politics as a rich persons than to leave it as a rich person", said Kovachki, who is believed to be the third richest person in Bulgaria with a fortune of EUR 700 M.

Bulgaria Parliament Rejects Rightist Motion for Hearing of PM over Price Shock

The Bulgarian Parliament rejected Wednesday morning the motion of the rightist
Democrats for Strong Bulgaria party demanding that a hearing of the Prime Minister be held over the recent price hikes, and the measures the government is planning to take to rectify them.

The motion was rejected overwhelmingly with the votes of the MPs from the ruling three-way coalition.

According to the DSB leader and former PM Ivan Kostov, the hearing of the PM Stanishev would be very important because it would force the government to pay attention to the measures that it is capable of initiating to tackle the high inflation.

Kostov pointed out that the average inflation in the EU-27 was 3,7%, and that in other Balkan states it was about 8%, whereas in Bulgaria it was 15%.

"This means that the government is not doing well in its policies. The situation is worrying, the petrol prices are rising. The government is trying to present the situation as a natural disaster", the former PM stated.

In his words, the rejection of demanded hearing left the impression that the majority was not interested in the price hikes, or knew that the PM had nothing to say about the anti-inflation measures of the government.

Bulgaria Prime Minister Invites Socialist International to Sofia

Bulgaria's Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev had proposed Sofia's candidature as host of a forum of the Socialist International (SI) dedicated to regional collaboration, as Bulgarian daily newspaper "Trud" (Labor) reports.

The Premier had made the proposal Tuesday, at the 23rd congress of the SI held in Athens.

In Athens Stanishev also had talks with the Serbian President Boris Tadić about accelerating the construction of the road connecting Sofia and. Niš. Tadić is the leader of the Serbian Democratic Party, also a SI member.

With the support of the Bulgarian Socialist Party, the Russian Party "Fair Russia" received a SI observer status from the Athens's forum.

Stanishev and the Russian Party Leader Sergey Mironov discussed their satisfaction from the good relations among their Parties

Bulgarian Rightists Call on PM to Discuss Price Shock

Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) Party of former PM Ivan Kostov have called on the Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev to discuss the price shock Bulgarians are experiencing and announce eventual measures the Cabinet is going to take.

If the government continue to reject calls for debate, DSB is to start a petition in order to initiate discussion, Mr Kostov said.

The party need to collect 48 signatures in parliament to start a debate on the issue.

Kostov pointed out that all governments usually try to lead anti-inflation policy while it is only the Bulgarian cabinet that do not even want to discuss the topic.

Bulgaria Political Leaders Declare Property Ownership

Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov together with his wife Zorka Parvanova had purchased farm land in the village of Ivanyane near Sofia for BGN 45 238 in 2007, according to a property declaration submitted with the National Audit Office.

Data from the declaration further shows that Zorka Parvanova owns a bank account in the amount of BGN 35,000 while the President has a bank loan in the amount of BGN 80,000.

The newly appointed Deputy Prime Minister Meglena Plugchieva had declared ownership over land and a house purchased in 1994 and 1995.

Plugchieva had submitted her declaration on May 21, 2008 citing the May 24 Parliament decision to appoint her as Deputy Prime Minister.

Newly appointed Interior Minister Mihail Mikov however, had submitted his declaration on May 30 as Member of the Parliament from the Parliamentary Group "Coalition for Bulgaria."

The National Audit Office's list also includes former Interior Minister Rumen Petkov. His declaration had been submitted on April 22, just two days before he was forced into resignation. According to the declaration Petkov had purchases a parking garage in Sofia and land in Ihtiman for which he had paid by his salary and loans.

Finance Minister's Plamen Oresharski declaration lists the purchase by his wife Elka Oresharska of a used "Renault Clio" automobile for BGN 7,000. Elka Oresharska also has a leasing car contract for BGN 28,000 while her husband, Finance Minister Oresharski has a bank account with BGN 20,000.

The wife of Dimitar Ivanovski, Orecharski's Deputy Finance Minister had received a meadow of 3 dekares in Sofia as a gift.

Bulgaria to Receive USD 360 M from Iraqi Dept

At 5:00 pm New York time Tuesday, Bulgaria is going to receive USD 360 M from the Iraqi dept to be deposited at US bank accounts belonging to the Bulgarian Cabinet, according to Deputy Finance Minister Dimitar Ivanovski.

Ivanovski explained that this amount constitutes 30% of the principal of the entire Iraqi dept, which has been accumulated during the 80's of the twentieth century from the Bulgarian "special production" supplies to Iraq.

The deal for the USD 360 M transfer had been personally concluded by Ivanovski during the meeting last year between the Finance Ministry and the World Bank in Washington DC, Ivanovski had explained.

Ivanovski is convinced that this was one of the Bulgarian Cabinet's great achievements since Bulgaria is to receive the money through a cash transaction while the countries members off the Paris Club forgave 80% of the Iraqi debt and received the remaining 20% as bonds.

Bulgaria Rightist UDF Mulls No Confidence Vote after EC Report

The rightist Bulgarian party Union of Democratic Forces is considering initiating a no confidence vote against the three-way coalition government immediately after the upcoming Monitoring Report of the European Commission gets published.

This was announced Tuesday by Lyubov Panayotova from the National Executive Council of the UDF.

Representatives of the rightists Democrats for Strong Bulgaria party of the former PM Ivan Kostov, whose members broke off from the UDF in 2003, announced earlier that the whole rightist opposition in the Parliament was ready to table a no confidence vote motion the day after the EC Report was published.

The leader of the UDF Plamen Yurukov stated Tuesday that the vote could initiated no only because of the Report, which his party believes would be highly critical, but also because of the overall failure of the government.

In his words, the Bulgarian Socialist Party, which is the senior partner in the governing three-way coalition, was incapable of governing the country in the context of its EU membership.

The UDF representatives also said that the forum on electoral reform initiated by the President Parvanov, which is to take place on July 7, was really late. They would insist on the introduction of limitations on the funding of political parties during an elections campaign.

Yurukov also pointed out his party believed the voters should have the right to rearrange the nominees on the party tickets, and that a non-political elections administration should be set up.

Bulgaria President Ready to Initiate Referendum on Electoral Reform

Тhe Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov will reserve his right to demand a referendum on electoral reform if the political parties fail to reach a consensus on new electoral legislation.

This was announced Monday by the leader of the Unified People's Party Maria Kapon after she, the leader of the "Novoto Vreme" party Emil Koshlukov, and the MP Neno Dimov met with the President Parvanov to discuss their demand that a referendum on the introduction of majority representation be held.

According to Kapon, the President might have to table to the Parliament a proposal for a referendum by July 30, and the voting itself might take place in October or November of 2008.

"We agreed that the theses against the majority representation actually replace the real political debate about the fact that the power should be vested in the citizens, not in the party leaderships", Kapon said after the meeting with Parvanov.

The leader of the "Novoto Vreme" ("New Time") party Emil Koshlukov stated in turn that the introduction of majority representation would restore people's confidence in the political system, and would restrict the buying of seats in the Parliament.

"This is an unique action, no Bulgarian President has ever used this power. For the first time Parvanov said he might do it. He also said he would seek the cooperation of all political parties for the resolution of this problem", Koshlukov stated.

Neno Dimov, who is a MP from the Democrats for Strong Bulgaria party of former PM Ivan Kostov, announced that on July 7 a roundtable on electoral change would be organized at the initiative of President Parvanov. Representatives of all major political parties in the country would be invited to participate.

Former Sofia Mayor Sofiyanski Wants Reduction of MPs down to 150

The leader of the Union of Free Democrats party and former Sofia Mayor Stefan Sofiyanski said Monday in the city of Ruse that the number of the Members of the Bulgarian Parliament had to be reduced to 150 from the present 240.

Sofiyanski too got involved in the ongoing debates on electoral reform in the media by stating that the reduction of the number of MPs must also come with the introduction of obligatory voting.

The ideas of the Union of Free Democrats also include the introduction of mandatory presence of the MPs in the Parliament and a full-time working day.

According to Sofiyanki, Friday's parliamentary control sessions, in which the ministers answer questions by the MPs, should be abolished because it was a parody.

In his words, the control over the government could be exerted by small committees of MPs, which would then report to the whole Parliament once a month.

The former Sofia Mayor also said that a new no confidence vote against the government had to be initiated by the opposition even before the upcoming report of the European Commission on Bulgaria.

The main motive for a no confidence vote would be the lack of commitment and inability of the government to take advantage of the country's EU membership in favor of the Bulgarian people.

Sofiyanski's Union of Free Democrats party is represented in the Parliament, where it is part of the Bulgarian People's Union coalition together with the VMRO party, and the Agrarian Union of Anastasia Mozer.

More Top Cops Resign in Bulgaria Interior Ministry

Two more high-ranking officials of the Bulgarian Interior Ministry have resigned - the Deputy Minister Goran Yonov and the Head of the Minister's cabinet Aleksandar Petrov.

The two top officials have submitted their resignations ten days ago but the news was announced on Monday.

Goran Yonov was appointed Deputy Minister of Interior in September 2007. He was in charge of selecting a firm for the issuing of the new ID documents with biometric data of the Bulgarian citizens.

However, none of the applicants won the tender of the Interior Ministry. According to Yonov then, the firms had failed to meet the deadlines. The bidders are currently appealing the decision of the Ministry in court.

The now former Head of the Cabinet of the Minister of Interior Aleksandar Petrov became famous around the scandals in the Ministry preceding the resignation of the former Interior Minister Rumen Petkov in the spring.

After Petkov's hearing by the Parliamentary Interior Committee, it was revealed that Aleksandar Petrov had been investigated by the Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime, and the Prosecutor's Office, but that nonetheless no charges had been brought against him.

The former Director of the Directorate for Combating Organized Crime Vanyo Tanov has stated before the Parliamentary Interior Committee that the investigations of the secret services had been brought to the Head of the Minister's cabinet first, where it was decided which one must be continued.

Aleksandar Petrov is also known to the media as the closest persons in the Ministry of the former Interior Minister Rumen Petkov.

A number of top policemen from Petkov's team have left the Ministry after his resignation including the former Deputy Minister Kamen Penkov, whose position is still vacant.

The formal reasons for Yonov's and Petrov's resignations are still unknown.

Bulgaria PM Attends Congress of Socialist International in Athens

The Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergey Stanishev attended Monday the opening of the XXIII Congress of the Socialist International in the Greek capital Athens.

During the first day of the Congress, Stanishev met with the leaders of the socialist parties of Greece - Georgios Papandreu, of Albania - Edi Rama, and of Croatia - Zoran Milanovich.

The main topics of the Congress have to do with global problems such as climate change, peace and conflict resolution, world economy, and migration.

The XXIII Congress is attended by over 600 socialist party representatives from 140 countries. The forum started with a minute of silence in honor of the assassinated former PM of Pakistan Benazir Bhuto.


Finland Ambassador Announces Violations in Bulgaria's PHARE Payments

Finland's Ambassador to Sofia Kauko Jamsen announced Friday some of the PHARE Program payments under Measure 1 for small and medium-sized firms had been delayed for two years.

Together with Bulgaria's Deputy PM Meglena Plugchieva, who in charge of monitoring the absorption of EU funding, His Excellency took part in a meeting with the members of the Bulgarian Business Leaders' Forum.

Jamsen also said that in addition to the delay, some of the funds destined for small firms have been directed illegally to larger companies. In his words, the European Commission and the Bulgarian Ministry of Economy had been informed about these violations of the respective Bulgarian institutions.

The Deputy PM Plugchieva in turn asked Jamsen to provide specific examples about funds that had been redirected, and said she could not comment on issues of the competence of the Economy Minister.

Plugchieva also reminded that the completion of the ten projects, whose PHARE funding had been frozen, would be financed through the state budget.

She expressed her hope that the frozen SAPARD funds would be unblocked in the fall. When asked whether the resignation of the SAPARD Agency Director Dimitar Tadarakov solved the problems in the instution, Plugchieva said that assuming responsibility was not enough, and that an action plan was needed to rectify the situation.

The Deputy PM also admitted there had been a one-year delay in the seven operative programs for 2007-2013 because accreditation of the Ministries for work on the programs was completed in December 2007.

She pointed out that the Competition Police and Transport were the most important programs for the businesses, and that one of the main issues in absorbing EU funds was the lack of information for the companies.

EC Denies Having Demanded Resignations of Bulgaria Officials

The EC Spokesman for agriculture and rural development Michael Mann denied Wednesday the reports in some Bulgarian media that the Commission had demanded the resignations of high-ranking Bulgarian officials over SAPARD program violations.

According to Mann, the claims that the European Commission had demanded that officials from the Ministry of Agriculture and Foods or from the SAPARD Executive Agency resign had nothing to do with the truth.

The spokesman pointed out that the EU only wanted to see Bulgaria solve its problems. The way for achieving this was Sofia's concern.

"Who governs SAPARD or any other agency in Bulgaria has nothing to do with the EC", Mann stated adding that the Commission only cared to see a properly applied efficient plan in order to unfreeze the blocked funding.

A total of about BGN 270 M had been frozen for three measures of the SAPARD program for Bulgaria over violations in the procedure for approving projects for EU funding.

Earlier on Wednesday the Head of Bulgaria's SAPARD Executive Agency Dimitar Tadarakov resigned over the frozen funding. He was positive his resignation had not resulted from political pressure.

Bulgaria's State Agriculture Fund Head Resigns

Bulgarian State Agriculture Fund CEO, Dimitar Tadarakov, resigned Wednesday after a little more than a year in office.

During an extraordinary press conference Mr Tadarakov declared he resigned "on moral grounds", and added that no political pressure had been exerted upon him.

Tadarakov stated that he felt absolutely no guilt over suspended payments from the EU under the SAPARD programme, as the allegations from Brussels concerned possible misappropriation in the Agriculture Fund committed years before he came into office.

The payment of over BGN 270 M for agricultural projects was suspended by the EC during Tadarakov's term in office.

On June 1, Tadarakov stated that the funds would probably soon be unfrozen following an audit, but this did not prove true and is said to be one of the reasons behind his resignation, which is still to be approved.

EC Lifts Export Ban on Bulgarian Pork

The European Commission Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health made a decision to lift the ban on Bulgaria's pork exports to EU member states and to third countries.

The news was announced Tuesday by the Director of the Bulgarian National Veterinary Service Zheko Baychev.

The decision would allow enterprises, approved to trade with EU countries to export Bulgarian pork meat to those countries and to countries outside the EU. Meat and pork products from pigs raised in back yards for family use are not included.

The decision removes the limitations imposed on November 24, 2006 when the EC banned trade with life pork and pork products that have not been subjected to heat treatment that guarantees the extermination of the classic pig plague virus.

EC experts have found out, after the conclusion of their mission in Bulgaria on June 26, that the National Veterinary Service had shown significant improvement in controlling the pig plague including the monitoring of wild boars.

France Officially Assumes EU Presidency from Slovenia

On Tuesday, July 1, France officially took over the rotation Presidency of the European Union from Slovenia.

The formal ceremony for the transferring of the Presidency took place in the town of Nova Goritsa in Slovenia. It was attended by the French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and his Slovenian counterpart Dimitrji Rupel.

Rupel stated that Slovenia transferred the EU to France in a good rather than bad condition, to which Kouchner replied it was "in an average condition".

The French Foreign Minister said the enlargement of the EU could not continue unless the Lisbon Reform Treaty, which the Irish voters rejected in a referendum in June, entered into force.

Kouchner made it clear that during the French Presidency the relations with Croatia and Turkey, which hope to join the Union, would be further developed.

He expects that two or three more chapters would be opened in the accession negotiations with Turkey, and that all chapters would be opened in the negotiations with Croatia.

The deepening of the cooperation with the states from the Western Balkans such as Macedonia, Serbia, and Albania will also be emphasized in the French Presidency.

Kouchner pointed out that France's main task was to make the EU and its institutions more understandable for the people.

The French European Affairs Secretary Jean-Pierre Jouyet has stated in an interview for the French newspaper Parisienne that the President Sarkozy wanted to make the EU more dynamic, flexible, and closer to its citizens.

The French government has set aside EUR 190 M for its expenditures during the time its will preside over the EU. According to Jouyet, this sum, which is 16 times greater than the money spent in 2005 by the UK Presidency, was necessary because of the large number of member states of the Union.

Bulgaria's Justice Minister Expects "Realistic" EC Report

Bulgaria's Justice Minister Miglena Tacheva announced she expects the coming report of the European Commission over the progress of the country in fighting crime to be objective and point out the weaknesses in the judicial system as well as the achievements.

According to Tacheva, Bulgaria has actually made progress in combating crime and corruption.

A week ago Bulgarian rightist party Democrats for Strong Bulgaria (DSB) said they are getting ready to file a new non-confidence vote against the Cabinet, as according to them, the EU report about Bulgaria, expected in the end of July, would be extremely negative.