site.btaDeputy PM Buchvarova: Bulgaria Will Not Trade Schengen Membership for Refugee Acceptance

Deputy PM Buchvarova: Bulgaria Will Not Trade Schengen Membership for Refugee Acceptance

Sofia, September 11 (BTA) - Bulgaria will not trade its 
acceptance into the Schengen area for the acceptance of 
refugees: these are two different problems, Deputy Prime 
Minister and Interior Minister Roumyana Buchvarova said. She was
  speaking at Friday's opening of the 12th International
Conference on Security in Southeastern Europe.

The forum, which features ministers, diplomats and experts, is
held under the auspices of President Rosen Plevneliev.

In Buchvarova's words, Bulgaria deserves to become part of the
Schengen area because it has met all technical requirements and
is entitled to that,  for its citizens are equal to all other
citizens of European  countries. Besides, this has also been set
 down in the  pre-accession treaty, she noted.

Buchvarova is considering to raise the issue of the refugees 
passing through Bulgaria who refuse to remain here before the 
European Council. They cross the country quickly and head for 
their final destination. The first task of Bulgaria's policy in
 respect to migration pressure  is to keep it in control, 
Buchvarova said, adding that illegal border crossing is 
declining.

The most important challenge to security is the integration of 
the newcomers to Europe, and this should be dealt with different
  measures, the Deputy PM said.

Buchvarova also dwelt on the subject of terrorism, which is both
 a global and a national problem.

All competent institutions, including the State Agency for
National Security (SANS), are in the process of drafting a new
for Bulgaria strategic document to counter radicalization and
terrorism, SANS Chairman Dimiter Georgiev said. Bulgaria
generally remains a transit point for migrants to Central and
West European countries. So far, it has stopped some 60,000
migrants which had to pass through the countryÒs territory and
the risk profile is under constant screening.

US Charge d'Affaires Roderick Moore said that his country and
Bulgaria are stable allies in the fight against terrorism. Soon
the two countries will broaden their strategic bilateral
dialogue which will include a special focus on
counter-terrorism, he added.

Defence Minister Nikolay Nenchev put an emphasis on the
so-called hybrid threats - a topic also mentioned by other
participants in the forum. He described terrorism as the biggest
 immediate threat and talked about the Islamic State and the
threat of foreign fighters.

Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov outlined the new challenges facing
 security: the migration pressure and the related threats of
radical Islamism and terrorism; the Ukrainian crisis; and the
resistance against the liberalization of the energy market in
the region.

Energy Minister Temenouzhka Petkova put an emphasis on
diversification and said that Bulgaria's main priorities are the
 interconnections with Greece, Turkey, Romania and Serbia. She
also underscored the importance of the opportunities for local
extraction of natural gas and petroleum.