The Bulgarian Presidency has an important contribution to the discussion on the future of Europe

The future development of the European Project depends on the will and readiness of the citizens of European societies to strengthen the processes of integration. Not only the efforts of individual innovators are needed for this, but also the joint efforts of Member States, of the European institutions, and of the civil society. Otherwise, there will be separate individuals with ideas who will not have the political and economic “muscle” to make these ideas reality.

This is what the Deputy Minister for the Bulgarian Presidency of the Council of the European Union Monika Panayotova said during a discussion on the topic “All roads lead to Europe? Perspectives for a Federal Union”, organized yesterday in Sofia by the Spinelli Group. Established in 2010 at the European Parliament, this group brings together MEPs from different political groups who cooperate on the constitutional issues, determining the future of the EU.

Deputy Minister Panayotova said that from a researcher’s point of view, today we witness several specific types of integration at EU level: a lowest common denominator integration - depending on the will of different countries to give up some of their sovereignty in certain areas; integration in several stages, where the accession to the EU is not automatically equal to integration in the EU, but there is a process of ongoing proving and preparedness for moving towards integrational areas closer to the core (like Schengen, the Euro Zone, the Banking Union); and an adaptive integration, which is a result of the reactiveness of the EU to certain events and processes, which the individual Member States cannot cope with on their own.

“However, the European Union is an organization without any analogue. Therefore, I would like to urge you to search for a new framework for the development of the EU. Defining this new framework resides in scope of the so-called ‘invisible art’ which opens a blank page, a blank canvas and invites the observer to mobilize their imagination and draw their own scenario. I believe that, given the unique character of the EU as a project, we can outline a new model which we can conditionally call ‘evolutionary integration’. It is based on the development of the Union itself, combining both well-known integrational elements and elements arising from the absence of any analogue,”

Deputy Minister Panayotova said further.

From the point of view of the democratic legitimacy of the EU, Deputy Minister Panayotova underscored the importance of the principle of citizens’ participation in developing policies, which gives citizens the opportunity to be truly at the core of the European Project.

She added that today we witness some strengthening of the integration project. As specific examples for that fact, she mentioned the start of the Permanent Structured Cooperation on Security and Defence and the efforts on the proposal for establishing a European Defence Industrial Development Programme.

Highlights of the discussion were also education, creating opportunities for young people, regional policy and commitment to the development of European regions, digital economy and cybersecurity, as well as institutional matters, related to the functions and operation of the European institutions.

Mrs. Iliana Yotova, Vice President of the Republic of Bulgaria, opened the event. Elmar Brok, MEP, Georg Georgiev, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Evgeni Kirilov, MEP in the period 2007-2014, Andrew Duff, Chairman of the Spinelli Group, Andrey Kovachev, MEP, and Ivailo Kalfin, member of the High-level Group on Own Resources, participated in the discussion too.