Brussels, 14/09/2009 (Agence Europe) - Bulgaria, which still hopes to join the Schengen Area in March 2011, could face difficulties on its way to accession to the passport-free area, Swedish Secretary of State for European Affairs Maria Asenius says. “It may be difficult for Bulgaria to meet the criteria for rapid accession to Schengen,” she is reported by Bulgarian National Radio as saying. She believes that the process of Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen Area need not be linked to the monitoring of the reform of the Bulgarian justice system. Asenius said that if problems with the reform persisted, the possibility of the EU freezing more funding could not be ruled out. “It's really the last chance, for the imposition of the safeguard clause expires at the end of the year. But I do not think this is the most likely scenario. I sincerely hope that Bulgaria and Romania will be focused and complete their work,” she said. She also said she was disappointed by the slow-down in efforts by the two countries to combat corruption. On Thursday 10 September, Justice, Freedom and Security Commissioner Jacques Barrot met Bulgarian Home Affairs Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov, who, speaking to press, pledged to speed up the country's preparations to join the Schengen Area by 2011. Barrot, too, gave assurances that the Schengen process would not be linked to progress under the cooperation and verification mechanism put in place by the European Commission. The Netherlands recently remarked that the lack of urgency on the parts of Bulgaria and Romania to tackle organised crime and corruption could have consequences for the transfer of European funding to the two countries and their accession to the Schengen Area. (B.C./transl.rt)