Bulgaria Is Not Ready for Schengen - Dutch Ambassador to Sofia
The Dutch ambassador to Sofia, Tom van Oorschot, reiterated the stance of his country that Bulgaria is not ready for accession to the Schengen Area.
The diplomat said this in an interview for private bTV station which was conducted while riding a bike in downtown Sofia.
In his words, if the judicial system starts functioning properly in Bulgaria, this will bring economic growth to the country.
According to him, there are Dutch businessmen who would like to invest in Bulgaria, but they feel insecure.
The ambassador made the comparison with Romania where large-scale corruption cases were solved and people were convicted of corruption, while this was not the case in Bulgaria.
He added that Bulgarians have the right to know everything about the collapse of Corporate Commercial Bank (KTB) and there is need for greater transparency.
In his opinion, the bankruptcy also harmed the confidence in the Bulgarian National Bank (BNB).
On the topic of bikes, the ambassador noted that in the Netherlands only ministers have state cars, while MPs ride bicycles or take the public transport.
The lack of car parks around the ministries coupled with high parking charges encourage Dutch officials to refrain from using cars in the city.
Van Oorschot highlihted that the car is not a sign of social status in the Netherlands.