Sofia to Remove Road Blocks before German, UK Embassies

The barriers in front of the Spanish Embassy in Sofia were ordered removed in July 2010. Photo by politika.bg

The road barriers placed in front of the German Embassy in Bulgaria will be removed by end-March, Sofia Mayor Yordanka Fandakova said Thursday in response to a question of Rosen Malinov, municipal councilor from the opposition, left-wing Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP).

The barriers in front of the British Embassy in Sofia on 9 Moskovska Street would also be removed and replaced by automatic retractable bollards which will be folded down between 6 p.m. and 8. a.m. so as to provide unimpeded access to the street, Fandakova explained.

At present, two barriers placed in front of the premises enclose a a parking lot for diplomatic vehicles and two portable security cabins.

There is another New Jersey barrier in the alley behind the National Art Gallery, which Fandakova vowed to remove and replace by flower pots.

She noted that the road barriers in front of the Turkish Embassy and the residence of the Turkish Ambassador to Sofia had already been lifted.

Malinov drew attention to other "pieces of illegally occupied municipal property" on Slavyanska Street (Justice Ministry) and on San Stefano Street (the Bulgarian National Television).

"What has been happening for the past 20 years cannot be remedied in a year or two. As a matter of fact, decisions are made on a case-by-case basis," the Mayor of Sofia stated.

In July 2010, a cross-institutional commission of representatives of the Foreign and Interior Ministries ordered the removal of steel barriers, Jersey barriers and flowerpots placed in front of the buildings of the diplomatic missions of Turkey, Spain, Great Britain and Germany.

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