This is why I am saying that a lot of people are having a problem in speaking about the candidate countries and particularly in speaking about Bulgaria. While I have no wish to emphasize that, I would like to say that we must treat their problems in a way that is only fair for the Bulgarians. And the fair way is to approach the real problem and to summon up courage to face it as it is. The problem is the Bulgarian poverty, the level of development of the Bulgarian economy, the weak competitiveness and understandably, the grave problems on the border. There is no use to close our eyes and say nothing of the fact that in the region where Bulgaria is located, with countries on either side that do not control their borders or else are far from the European standards of border control, we must intercept heavy flows of smuggled goods, the trafficking of people, prostitution, illicit migration, etc.
Poverty is the major problem.
Bulgaria can overcome poverty only with very fast economic growth and a bold policy to foster it. At the end of 2000 conditions are available in Bulgaria for a bold policy that promotes economic growth. First, because the private sector dominates the Bulgarian economy. The Bulgarian economy has started to grow in a healthy way. With the growth rates that we achieved in the past three years despite the heavy blows from last year s Kosovo crisis, we expect a very good rate of sound economic growth this year.