The strategic objective until 2020 is to make a considerable progress in convergence with the EU. In the "Strategy for Catch up Economic Development by 2020" we have recommended policies to do so. The most important is to achieve accelerated competitive growth.

Catching up growth needs high investment activity. We recommend as a target for 2010 saving ratio of 26% and investment ratio of 31%. By 2020 they should be 33% and 37% respectively.

Around 70% of the investment will be provided from domestic saving and the balance from external resources. The transfers from the EU are expected to be around 4% of GDP or 11-13% of total investment.

On this background an analysis is made of the Financial Framework of the European Commission (EC), published on 10 February 2004. The gross and the net value of the promised resources are described as well as the existing ambiguities on the part of the EU and Bulgaria. The ambiguities on the Bulgarian side are more important, mainly due to modest absorption potential.

A conclusion is made that the actual net inflows for Bulgaria for 2007-2009 and the following years will be much less than the declared gross values. Bulgaria will probably acquire 30-40% less than the published figures. The main blame for this gap should go to the Bulgarian counterparts.

The Bulgarian people must know the full truth for the EU now. This truth is positive as a whole, but is far more complex and controversial. The truth for the EU is not as rosy as presented by Bulgarian authorities.

There are no reasons to hide the truth for the EU and the consequences of our accession. There will be more pronounced negative components in these consequences in the early years after accession, but in the medium and particularly in the long term the positive ones will prevail. Bulgaria has got no reasonable alternative to EU integration! Bulgaria does not have economic, social and political future outside United Europe!