site.btaEU Commissioner McGuinness Welcomes Bulgaria's Wish to Lift Derogation from Ban on Russian Oil Imports

Speaking at a joint news conference with Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov here on Monday, European Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and the Capital Markets Union Mairead McGuinness said that the European Commission very strongly welcomes Bulgaria's wish to lift the derogation from the EU' ban on Russian oil imports. In her words, that speaks of Bulgaria's wish to comply strictly with the sanctions against Russia. 

McGuinness said that this is her first official visit to Bulgaria and a wonderful opportunity to meet with Prime Minister Denkov as well as with the ministers of Finance and of Energy. The discussions they held at Monday's meeting were very useful, she noted.

She explained that her task is to help the EU Member States implement the many sanctions against Russia. "We have a wonderful cooperation with Bulgaria in that field," she underscored. In her words, she will visit the Kapitan Andreevo border control checkpoint on Tuesday to see how the customs checks at the border are carried out; she will then present that information to her colleagues in the European Commission.

She also said that one of the important legislative tests on which she is working jointly with Bulgaria is a anti-money-laundering package, which will guarantee that there is no risk of laundering money from unauthorized economic activities.

Asked about Bulgaria joining the eurozone, the Commissioner said that the country should meet specific criteria. Instead of setting a date and wondering whether it is the right one, it is important to meet all entry criteria, she underscored. As far as she has heard, there is good will to do all of that as soon as possible; however, she could not say a specific date.

Taking a question about the sanctions against Russia, she said that the Member States implement them with the European Commission's support. The more sanctions there are, the more attempts are made to circumvent them, she noted. According to her, there are goods that continue to go to the battlefield. "We have to use all our resources to determine the risks and find a way to handle the sanctions' circumvention," she said.