"It is important for us to stand firm and instill confidence in our European partners, and this frequent change of governments, frequent elections, does not send a good signal", Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Iliana Ivanova said in response to a question on how the Bulgarian political crisis resonates in Brussels. 

"Entry into the eurozone is a matter of meeting criteria. The latest convergence report published by the European Commission shows that Bulgaria ranks the best among the other candidate countries. We have never been so close to eurozone membership, but we must meet all four criteria. We have not yet met the inflation criterion, but that too will be achieved by the end of the year'', added Commissioner Ivanova. Ivanova categorically stated that all criteria for full entry into the Schengen area have been met.