News

The Eurogroup, a group of finance ministers from eurozone countries, has encouraged Bulgaria to adopt the euro. Bulgaria has requested an extraordinary convergence report on the euro, which will be prepared by the European Commission and will assess Bulgaria's progress towards meeting the euro convergence criteria.

The Bulgarian National Assembly's Culture Committee rejected a bill to rename the National Library Sts. Cyril and Methodius to People's Library, with proponents arguing for a "people's" status similar to other national institutions, while the library director opposed the change, citing its existing national status and concerns about politicization.

Bulgaria reallocates EUR 87 million originally planned for the Russe-Veliko Tarnovo motorway to the Europe motorway project. Additionally, approximately EUR 500 million intended for railway modernization to North Macedonia's border will now support the Sofia-Burgas rail route, as previous projects faced delays threatening EU funding.

Romanian far-right populist Calin Georgescu's candidacy for the May presidential elections has been cancelled, sparking clashes between his supporters and the gendarmerie in Bucharest. Meanwhile, tensions are rising in Serbia ahead of a major anti-corruption demonstration expected to draw tens of thousands of protesters to Belgrade on March 15th.

Bulgaria's Confederation of Independent Trade Unions calls for an additional €100 million to urgently boost public sector salaries, especially in underfunded institutions. They argue the proposed 5% increase falls short of the originally promised 10%, significantly impacting employee retention and recruitment efforts.