EU Commission

Kristalina Georgieva was among the "rare good surprises" coming from the outgoing EU Commission, the French daily Le Monde wrote Wednesday.

It is the inefficient management of EU funds, and not money shortage, that poses the biggest challenge to Bulgaria, incoming Vice President for Budget and Human Resources Kristalina Georgieva said.

In an interview with the Bulgarian National Television she added among her main priorities was to help Bulgaria to absorb EUR 16 B in the 2014-2020 period.

Mina Andreeva will be one of the three main spokespeople for EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.

Andreeva previously had the same position at the administration of outgoing EU justice commissioner Viviane Reding.

Kristalina Georgieva's promotion to the position of EU Commission Vice President for Budget and Human Resources shows the exceptional appreciation for her professionalism, President Plevneliev has said.

In a statement to the media, he has noted Georgieva had been conferred "one of the most important portfolios at the [European] Commission".

Bulgaria's Kristalina Georgieva is likely to get the budget portfolio at the EU Commission later this week, EU sources say.

She might also become one of the Commission's Vice Presidents.

Turkey should prioritize expanding freedom of speech to achieve improvement in its bid to join the European Union, according to Neelie Kroes, the vice president of the EU Commission.

The EU Commission has decided to include the Trapezitsa roll in its list of protected food products.

Named after the historical Trapezitsa hill in Veliko Tarnovo, the old capital of Bulgaria, the roll is made of pressed meat from a pork's neck mixed with salt and spices (red and white pepper and garlic).

The Ministry of Economy has granted access to all documents related to the South Stream pipeline project's Bulgarian section.

According to its press office, it is the Ministry's "main priority" to make Bulgarians familiar with the situation in energy and developments on the large-scale energy projects.

By Henning Gloystein

LONDON - The European Union could ban gas exports and limit industrial use as part of emergency measures to protect household energy supplies this winter, a source told Reuters, as it braces for a possible halt in Russian gas as a result of the Ukraine crisis.

The EU Commission will put aside a total of EUR 30 M for trans-border cooperation between Bulgaria and Turkey in 2014-2020, media sources say.