Prosecutors launched a pre-trial investigation into the disclosure of the identity of an Interior Ministry operative, Prosecutor-General Boris Velchev told reporters on May 14 2008 on his way to the weekly session of the Supreme Judicial Council, as quoted by Dnevnik daily. The probe is based on the findings of a report on the work of the ministry, carried out by the State Agency for National Security (SANS), he added, but declined to say whether the investigation targeted former interior minister Roumen Petkov. The probe was "against an unknown perpetrator", he said. read more

The Union for the Protection of Private Proprietors (UPPP) took Bulgarian government to court over Natura 2000 environmental network, Investor.bg reported on May 12. In particular, the union contests a Governmental decision that put an environmental protection tag on territories, which are part of approved general and territorial master plans. read more

A decline in the number of Bulgarian, and Romanian, seasonal workers is threatening to spoil Britain's soft fruits harvest, British newspaper The Independent reported on May 12. Once a lucrative business, which drew thousands of labourers, many of them students, this year British producers struggled to recruit enough people to pick the 50,000 tons of strawberries, raspberries and other soft fruits grown in the country for the local market. read more

The European Union has lost faith in the ability of Bulgarian authorities to push ahead with reforms and was considering sanctions, ranging from freezing the 6.7 billion euro worth of structural funding the country is set to receive until 2013 to suspending some of its rights in the bloc, Bulgarian-language Kapital weekly reported on May 10. Under article 7 of the Treaty of Nice, in case of "a serious and persistent breach of fundamental rights", the Council of the EU may, by a qualified majority of four fifths and co-ordinating with the European Parliament, suspend certain of the rights of the country concerned, including the right to vote in the Council of the EU. read more

ArcelorMittal, the world's biggest steel maker, is prepared to pay between $400 million and $700 million for a majority stake in Bulgaria’s ailing steel mill Kremikovtzi, Dnevnik daily reported, quoting a bondholder of the steel mill. The exact figure would depend on the amount of hidden debts Kremikovtzi has, the same source, which spoke on condition of anonymity, said. Such obligations would include the costs of the viability and environmental programmes of the steelworks, which the mill has to carry out in order to comply with mandatory European Union environmental regulations. If it does not meet the EU requirements, Kremikovtzi faces closure. read more

The Bulgarian military contingent would leave its responsibility zone in Afghan capital Kabul by summer, Sega daily reported on May 8, quoting unnamed sources in the Bulgarian Defence Ministry. Local authorities had firmly insisted before the Nato command in charge of the operation that the Afghan police take over the security of the city in several months' time. The 200 Bulgarian soldiers, who have served under the Italian command for two years, would be given new tasks, Sega daily said. The Cabinet is yet to discuss several options. It is possible that the contingent, again under Italian command, would head to the northern part of Afghanistan, where the alliance commanders intend to station it. read more

Kremikovtzi steel mill will shortly be run by court-appointed trustees, a senior manager at the mill told Dnevnik daily on condition of anonymity on May 7. A court pronounced to this effect on April 30, he said. read more

Ultra-nationalist Ataka party would seek to join the European Peoples' Party (EPP) in the near future, Ataka's leader Volen Siderov told Times of Malta newspaper on May 2 2008. Siderov said that Ataka was not a far-right party but a rather centre-right one. After the elections for Bulgarian members of European parliament last May, Ataka now has three MEPs. They were part of the ultra-right group - Identity, Tradition, Sovereignty - until it disbanded at the end of 2007 after the withdrawal of some of its members. According to Siderov, Ataka's three MEPs considered themselves to be independent, Times of Malta said. Now Ataka's goal was to make its MEPs members of the EPP. read more

The South Stream gas pipeline may not reach southern Italy via Greece, as had been envisioned for the project, because Italian authorities preferred for the pipeline to enter the country from the north, Greek daily To Vima said, quoting information from the Greek cabinet. It was very possible than that South Stream would start from Russian port of Novorosiysk, pass under the Black Sea to the Bulgarian read more

Next year Bulgaria will witness many new initiatives which will improve the living standards of Bulgarian citizens, Bulgarian Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev told a 3000-odd Socialist gathering in Sofia in commemoration of the Labour Day on May 1. He also promised the state would exercise tighter control to ensure due respect for labourers’ rights and higher income, Bulgarian state-owned broadcaster BNT reported. read more