Europe

Bulgaria takes on the presidency at a testing time!

Ska Keller, President of the Greens/EFA Group in the European Parliament comments on Bulgaria taking on the presidency of the Council of the European Union: "Bulgaria takes on the presidency at a testing time, and we are hoping that by the end of the presidency, Europe will have taken a step forward. Whether it is safeguarding the future of the Eurozone, creating a more genuinely social Europe, getting real on fighting climate change or solving the rule of law crisis in several states, they have a difficult but important job to do.

One of the key underlying problems in Europe is the lack of trust and solidarity between member states, exemplified by the debate on the reform of the asylum system and namely the Dublin regulation. It is high time for the new presidency to get moving. The European Parliament has already set out ambitious proposals that would help bring an end to the terrible human suffering caused by the broken system.  The new presidency should make steering this through the European Council a top priority.

Bulgaria also has to clean up its act at home, where corruption has been tolerated for far too long. Their plans to open up the Pirin National Park to commercial logging are a further cause for concern and I would urge the government to listen to the voice of the protesters and change course."

 

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