Bulgaria contributes significantly to the security of the Schengen area. Protecting the external European border and preventing illegal migration remain key priorities for our country. This was stated by Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov at his meeting with the European Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner. During their conversation at the Council of Ministers, Zhelyazkov thanked for the Commission's sustained support for Bulgaria's accession to Schengen throughout the process.
Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov highlighted the support provided by the EC to our country in the amount of over 300 million euros over the past three years - for integrated border surveillance, off-road vehicles and drones. Zhelyazkov and Brunner agreed that this is an important investment not only for Bulgaria, but also for the security of the European Union as a whole. The Prime Minister added that significant technical, financial and human resources are also being provided at the national level to protect the external borders, including by increasing the capacity of the Border Police.
Prime Minister Zhelyazkov specifically highlighted the excellent cooperation with “Frontex“ and expressed gratitude for their contribution to the joint work. The Prime Minister also highlighted the importance of interaction with neighboring Member States Romania and Greece, as well as intensive cooperation with the Turkish authorities - at the political, strategic and operational level. Zhelyazkov pointed out that since September 2023, there has been a continuous trend for a sustainable reduction in migratory pressure along the external land border with Turkey. The Prime Minister also added that strengthening the EU's external borders should be a shared priority for all Member States, not just those on the front line.
Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov pointed out that after our accession to Schengen and the abolition of internal border controls, there has been no change in the security environment. From this point of view, according to the Prime Minister, there is no need to extend the reintroduction of border controls on the Bulgarian-Romanian border after July 1 of this year. A number of measures will be taken at the national and bilateral level in the neighboring border regions to compensate for the removal of border controls. Similar compensatory measures have already been applied on the internal land border with Greece since the beginning of this year.
During the meeting, Zhelyazkov and Brunner also discussed the latest events related to Russia's ongoing aggression against Ukraine, as well as the conflicts in the Middle East, which pose significant challenges to the security of the EU.