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Article: Bulgarian rhapsody; Charlemagne.(The EU and Bulgaria)(European Commission imposed sanctions on Bulgaria)
- Article from:
- The Economist (US)
- Article date:
- May 16, 2009
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Economist Newspaper Ltd. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Why the European Commission imposed sanctions on its poorest Balkan member
FOR a man facing the threat of bankruptcy in six months' time, thanks to European Union sanctions on his country, Stefan Petrov has pretty warm words for Brussels. Mr Petrov is a dairy farmer from the rolling hills of northern Bulgaria. Two-and-a-half years after his country joined the EU, his business is in peril after [euro]800m ($1.1 billion) in transitional aid for new members, including farm aid, was frozen by the European Commission last year, amid complaints about fraud, contract-padding and conflicts of interest. About [euro]220m of the frozen money has been lost for ever, after a ...