Member states of the European Union

Hungary threatened on Monday to block Bulgaria's bid to join the Schengen area if fees for the transfer of Russian gas are not removed.

The Financial Times reports this, citing three sources familiar with the discussions (noting that the Hungarian authorities have not commented officially).

The United States' behind-the-scenes efforts have influenced Austria's change of heart regarding Bulgaria and Romania's Schengen entry, according to reports by the Austrian newspaper Der Standard. Recent discussions led by former US Ambassador Ronald Lauder and US Assistant Secretary of State James O'Brien in Vienna played a pivotal role in convincing Austria to lift its veto.

Recent Eurostat findings shed light on Bulgarian households' cultural spending, indicating a meager 1.5% expenditure on cultural goods and services in 2020. This figure, trailing only behind Greece's 1.3%, underscores Bulgaria's position with spending notably below the EU average of 2.6%.

Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov clarified that ongoing negotiations with Austria have yet to yield a finalized agreement for Bulgaria's accession to Schengen by air. Speaking to bTV, Denkov emphasized the necessity for compliance with general European regulations, dismissing the prospect of Bulgaria adhering to specific rules exclusive to the nation.

Bulgarians are the unhappiest nation in the European Union. Austria, Poland and Romania rank in the top 3 of the happiest nations. This is shown by a new survey of the European Union, which is conducted every year by Eurostat. The rating scale goes from 0, which is absolute dissatisfaction with life in the country, to 10, which indicates that things could not be better.

This was told to the Austrian APA agency at the Ministry of the Interior in Vienna.
"Close cross-border cooperation in the fight against brutal people smugglers is absolutely necessary. The knowledge of Austrian drone specialists is therefore also sought after on the border of Serbia and North Macedonia," Interior Minister Gerhard Karner told the agency.

Henry Kissinger, the former US secretary of state who passed away on Thursday, took with him the secrets that pursued him like ghosts, making him steer clear of the Cyprus issue. Based on personal experiences linked to an obsession with the events of 1974, I can attest that this historic episode greatly perturbed him. In reality, Greece and Cyprus became victims of his cynical realism.

The central bank governors of Poland and Hungary are caught up in noisy disputes with opponents over their rate-setting policy, raising new hazards for investors willing to brave central Europe's bitterly polarized politics.

Bulgaria does not expect today to receive a response from Austria regarding the lifting of the veto against the country's entry into Schengen. This was stated by Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov before his meetings today in the Austrian Parliament, and later with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met with Israel counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the Greece-Cyprus-Israel trilateral summit in Nicosia on Monday.

According to available information, the two leaders discussed ways to further enhance and deepen bilateral relations across various sectors, including defense, the economy, tourism, and the agri-food industry.