European Union

The Standard & Poor’s agency on Friday reaffirmed Greece’s sovereign rating at CCC+ with a stable outlook. S&P also predicted that the country’s economy will shrink by 3 percent in 2015.

Hungary, Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic are maintaining their harsh stance on the matter of accepting refugees into their countries.

Interior Minister Rumyana Bachvarova assured that Bulgaria will fulfill its commitment to accept the refugees, who will be distributed from Greece, Italy and Hungary according to the new quota system unveiled by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Wednesday.

President of the European Council Donald Tusk said Friday he would call an extra-ordinary European Conference Summit (EUCO) in September, if EU Justice and Interior Ministers failed to find common ground on the refugee crisis next Monday.

The European Commission said on Thursday that Bulgaria and Romania both meet the criteria to join the European Union's Schengen passport-free travel zone but it is not up to the EU's executive body to take a decision.

The recently established EU Regional Trust Fund on Thursday signed two contracts worth a total of EUR 17.5M that aim to address the education and food needs of 240,000 Syrian refugees in Turkey, the European Commission said.

The first contract was signed with UNICEF and is worth ?12.5 million.

The European Commission (EC) adopted on Wednesday the cross border cooperation Interreg programme for Bulgaria and Greece for the 2014-2020 period.

The programme is worth EUR 129 M, with more than EUR 110 M provided from the European Regional Development Fund, the press service of EC informs.

Ireland has agreed to take part in a refugee quota system proposed by the European Commission and will take in 2,900 additional refugees, Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald confirmed on Sept.10.

Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister Meglena Kuneva stated on Wednesday that the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen Area is part of the solution to the unprecedented refugee crisis affecting Europe.

According to her, this was the case especially now that changes to guarding the external borders of the EU were being discussed.

Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, on Wednesday proposed a new plan for accepting 160,000 refugees in the EU and at the same time proposed that non-EU countries in the Western Balkans be put on a list of safe countries.

The proposition presented to the European Parliament adds another 40,000 to an existing plan for quotas set in May.