Bulgaria may close EU talks by end of June

SOFIA, Bulgaria, June 9 (UPI) -- Bulgaria may close European Union accession talks by June 30, European Union Enlargement Commissioner Guenter Verheugen was quoted as saying Wednesday.

Verheugen's remarks were quoted in the Dnevnik daily newspaper.

Bulgaria hopes to join the European Union in 2007 having missed out on the European Union's largest ever enlargement May 1. The most recent enlargement brought in eight former communist countries plus Malta and Cyprus.

Some diplomats say privately Bulgaria may finish accession negotiations as early as next week.

The European Union's main concerns about Bulgaria center on widespread corruption and organized crime. There are also concerns about Bulgaria's relatively low standard of living and the potential costs to existing member states who will be liable to pay large sums of money to fund European Union Structural Fund projects in Bulgaria.