Bulgaria has not had an independent currency for a long time, so adopting the euro will not change anything significant for the people, notes Michael Martens in FACS. How other German-language publications are commenting on yesterday's decision for Bulgaria.
Many German-language publications are writing today that Bulgaria has received the green light from Brussels to join the eurozone from January 1, 2026. But there is no mention of any national pride in the success achieved, points out “Die Zeit“: “A divided society stands on the threshold of the eurozone, because the euro is polarizing. "The country is divided into supporters and opponents of the euro," Genoveva Petrova of the Alpha Research Institute for Public Opinion Research was quoted as saying to the publication.
For the well-educated urban population, who spend their holidays in neighboring Greece and send their children to study in Western Europe, the path to the euro is a natural one. But the currency change scares the elderly and people from rural areas, especially those with low incomes and who cannot afford some basic food products. They now fear that the introduction of the euro will make life more expensive, the publication notes.
"The lev is not an independent currency even now"
In people's daily lives, however, almost nothing will change, writes on the same occasion in the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung" (FAZ). It seems that they have not received the important message that since the lev is now tied to the euro, and previously to the German mark, few things can change after the introduction of the common European currency. As for the concerns that this is a loss of independence, the Bulgarian lev has not been truly independent and could not be, for example, devalued. Bulgaria has long lacked independence in matters related to its currency, writes the author of the publication, Michael Martens.
Under the title “Playing with the Euro“ he also dwells in detail on the role of President Rumen Radev, who, according to Martens, has taken a position between populism, nationalism and a favorable tone towards Russia. “Radev decided to use the sentiment against the euro for political plans after the end of his expiring term as president. He seems to be aware of the hopelessness of his undertaking (the requested referendum on the euro - ed.) and even ignored the legal arguments of people in his entourage. The important thing was clearly to send a political message to the population and present himself as a caring father to the Bulgarians“, writes Michael Martens in FACS.
Pro-Russian protests
The positive decision for Bulgaria has been overshadowed by political protests in the country, organized by nationalist and pro-Russian parties in Bulgaria, notes the German “Handelsblatt“. Among the opponents of the euro, the publication also lists President Rumen Radev, who proposed a referendum on the topic, which was, however, rejected by the pro-European majority in parliament, the newspaper recalls.
Why are people in Bulgaria afraid of the euro?
The single currency is expected to be a kind of accelerator of European unity, although such an effect has not been observed recently, notes the Swiss “Neue Zürcher Zeitung“ (NCZ). In an article titled “Only weak countries still want the euro“ the publication points out that the last countries to join the eurozone were “light category&rdash; countries - such as Lithuania in 2015 and Croatia in 2023. The next member of the eurozone - Bulgaria - is in the same category, the publication points out and calls it an “economic dwarf“. It is added that Bulgaria has the lowest productivity per capita in the entire EU - 64 percent of the average for the Community countries.
Corruption, independence of the court, money laundering and other problems
While the European Commission (EC) considers the conditions for adopting the euro to be fully met, the ECB expresses some reservations, but is not against Bulgaria joining the eurozone, it is clear from another publication on the subject in the FAC. The central bank's report states that Bulgaria still faces "challenges" in terms of the "quality" of institutions and political decision-making. As examples, the ECB cites corruption, the efficiency of public administration, the tax morale of citizens and the independence of the judicial system.
Another problem is mentioned by "Handelsblatt" - money laundering. In this regard, the publication recalls that Bulgaria remains on the list of countries placed "under surveillance" by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) (an independent intergovernmental body that develops policies to protect the global financial system against money laundering - ed.).
The decision has been practically made
The final decision on the enlargement of the euro area will be taken by EU finance ministers in July. Before that, the Eurogroup and EU heads of state and government will be consulted, and the ECB and the European Parliament (EP) must also give their opinions. However, the Commission's recommendation effectively pre-empts this issue, the FAC concludes.