site.btaUPDATED Interior Minister Ilkov: Bulgaria Moves Towards Full Entry into Schengen Area, Abolition of Land Border Control

At a briefing on Saturday, caretaker Interior Minister Atanas Ilkov said that Bulgaria has taken a significant step towards admission to the Schengen area and the abolition of border controls at land borders.

The final decision on Bulgaria's entry into Schengen by land will be made on December 12, caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev said on Friday after a meeting in Budapest of the interior ministers of Bulgaria, Romania, Austria and Hungary.

Ilkov pointed out that Bulgaria and Romania contribute a lot to increasing security in the European area. "The assessment of all the efforts we have made was extremely good," he noted, adding that the positive assessment is related to the results achieved in combating illegal migration.

The Minister noted that the migration pressure for the year was 70% lower compared to 2023, and the migrants discovered in the country were 46% fewer. He reported on the increased capacity of the border police by over 1,000 people along with the necessary equipment. He also pointed out the enhanced cooperation and joint actions with the authorities in Turkiye and Romania, as well as with Frontex.

Ilkov commented that there has been no deterioration in the security environment since the lifting of air and sea border controls in March. "We are confident that when land controls are lifted, we will maintain these results," he said, adding that the level of control will remain the same. 

The Minister also pointed out that Bulgaria's admission to Schengen by land will be justice for Bulgarian citizens and businesses. He noted that Bulgarian businesses suffer annual losses of BGN 800 million (and BGN 1.3 billion in lost profits) and stated that he hopes this will remain in the past.

Regarding the queues of trucks at the borders, the Minister stated that they are expected to end in early 2025, when Bulgaria is expected to become full members of Schengen and border controls will be lifted.

Ilkov pointed out that he had invited the interior ministers of Hungary, Austria and Romania to Bulgaria on January 2 to attend a presentation of the contingent of 100 officers from the four countries which will operate on the Bulgarian-Turkish border. This was an agreement reached at a meeting in Budapest on Friday between Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and Austria.

He explained that there is no "fine print" in connection with an agreement reached to accept Bulgaria into Schengen after the meeting in Budapest regarding the return of migrants to this country under the Dublin Regulation. He also commented that during the talks with the ministers "no political nuance appeared anywhere, we spoke at an expert level, there is no pledge that we have promised at the expense of everything that lies ahead of us". He added that the signed declaration clearly spells out the commitments of Bulgaria and Romania.

Minister Ilkov also noted that additional funds will be needed in connection with actions on this country's borders after Bulgaria's admission by land into Schengen, but the exact number will be calculated after analyzes at the end of the year.