A delegation of the French Senate, lead by the Chairman of the Committee on European Affairs Mr. Simon Suture, met with the Committee on European Affairs and Oversight of the European Funds (CEAOEF). Important topics of the European Agenda were discussed, such as the enlargement the Schengen area, the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism and the future Multiannual Financial Framework of the EU with a special emphasis on Cohesion policy and the Common Agricultural policy.

CEAOEF’s Chairwoman Ms. Monika Panayotova pointed out that the topic of Schengen has been dominated by much demagogy in certain members of the EU, because the Schengen borders are external borders of the Area. Therefore, Bulgarian and Romanian citizens’ right to free movement should not be restricted, since Bulgaria and Romania are part of the area of internal integration. Ms. Panayotova expressed her gratitude for the evolution in the French position on the Bulgarian accession to the Schengen area, and voiced her expectation that a final decision on the issue would be reached in September 2012.

Ms. Panayotova was optimistic about the forthcoming July European Commission report on the Mechanism for Cooperation and Verification, which will contain an assessment of the Bulgarian accomplishments in the fields of the judiciary reform and the fight against organized crime for the five years the Mechanism has been in force. According to Ms. Panayotova “our positive motivation is due to the fact that the EC’s recommendations are being implemented and the Parliament has put into effect the necessary legislative changes through the means of the Asset Forfeiture Law and the changes in the Judiciary System Act.

After the recent elections in France, the French position on the Bulgarian accession to Schengen remains unchanged, but it is expected to evolve favorably. The French senators and the Bulgarian members of the Parliament agreed that Bulgaria’s accession to Schengen should not be dependent upon our country’s assessment on the Mechanism for Cooperation and Verification. According to Senator Suture, the Mechanism should be considered an instrument for enhanced cooperation, rather than an implement for verification. The Bulgarian MPs acknowledged that upon its adoption, the Mechanism had been considered a strong motivating factor for the implementation of the necessary reforms. With the new legislative framework and the accomplished results, this primary goal has been achieved.

Within the debate on the future Multiannual Financial Framework CEAOEF’s Deputy Chairwoman Ms. Meglena Plugchieva insisted that Bulgaria preserve the volume of funds allocated for Cohesion policy. She expressed the Bulgarian position on the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy and the expectation that the level of direct payments to the Bulgarian agricultural producers would equate those in the rest of the Member States by 2014.

The agenda of the French senators’ visit includes meetings with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Mr. Tsvetan Tsvetanov and the Deputy Foreign Minister Mr. Ivan Najdenov.

The delegation of the Committee on European Affairs of the French Senate will visit Plovdiv on May 18 2012. The French senators will meet the mayor Mr. Ivan Totev and His Eminence
Plovdiv metropolitan Nikolay.