site.btaInterim Foreign Minister Considers Submitting Eurozone Membership Bid

Interim Foreign Minister Considers Submitting Eurozone Membership Bid

Sofia, February 23 (BTA) - "Why not think about submitting a bid for Bulgaria's accession to the Eurozone?", interim Foreign Minister Radi Naidenov said on Thursday, speaking at a discussion on "The Future of Europe. The Bulgarian Presidency in 2018 and the Priorities of Bulgaria's Businesses and Public."

Naidenov said Eurozone membership has many advantages and disadvantages, and the former outweigh the latter. He admitted, however, that this is not a popular option. Being a member of a caretaker government, Naidenov recalled that it was the former caretaker government of prime minister Stefan Sofiyanski (February-May 1997) that submitted Bulgaria's bid for NATO membership. "So I thought we might do something that could be supported by those who favour such a move and are mature enough to see the advantages," the Foreign Minister said.

He added: "I have taken the liberty of putting forward this novel idea, but this is an important matter and it is essential that we bring it to debate and reach a decision at the right moment.