Bulgaria Has Been Controlling Its Borders Successfully for a Long Time – Minister

When it comes to human smuggling, we have to admit that there is a lot of work to be done not only in Bulgaria but on an EU scale, according to Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov.

Speaking Monday after the official ceremony for the re-election of Goran Svilanovic as Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council, Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister underscored that the refugee crisis was very serious, adding that all Member States were obviously trying to find a way to control their borders and the migratory pressure.

Mitov, who signed the agreement on Svilanovic’s re-election in his capacity of rotating chair of the South East European Cooperation Project (SEECP) (July 1, 2015 – June 30, 2016), noted that Bulgaria was not only controlling its borders successfully but had also managed to establish a well-designed system for registration and coordination with all other Member States.

Bulgaria’s Foreign Minister described human smuggling as a horrifying phenomenon which had to be opposed as firm and as swiftly as possible.

He said that he had repeatedly insisted that all member states pay serious attention to the problem and take steps to increase the penalty for people involved in this type of activity.

Svilanovic, as cited by the Focus news agency, emphasized that the Balkans were capable of coping with the refugee crisis by putting more effort into it, adding that the countries would seek support from the EU.