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Bulgaria has been in a deep political crisis for four years with little end in sight.
News Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Borissov’s party first sent an invitation to the pro-European formation Democratic Bulgaria (EPP) but then announced that it would negotiate with the pro-Russian Bulgarian Socialist Party and the populist There Is Such a People party, which accepted the invitation. [Hristo Vladev/NurPhoto via Getty Images]
Former Bulgarian prime minister Boyko Borissov and his party GERB (EPP) announced on Monday that they would begin talks in Sofia to form a government to pull the country out of the long-running political crisis.
Borissov’s party first sent an invitation to the pro-European formation Democratic Bulgaria (EPP) but then announced that it would negotiate with the pro-Russian Bulgarian Socialist Party and the populist There Is Such a People party, which accepted the invitation.
“The possibility of forming a broad parliamentary majority supporting a regular government with an anti-corruption and pro-European profile – with assured stability and without floating majorities was discussed in the first meeting of the negotiations between GERB and Democratic Bulgaria,” a joint statement by GERB and Democratic Bulgaria said after their meeting on Monday.
Bulgaria has been in a deep political crisis for four years, continuing in the current parliament, which has been deadlocked for almost a month over the difficult election of a parliamentary speaker.
The political crisis makes Bulgaria a weak link for the EU and NATO in the region amid Russian aggression in Ukraine. The country is one of the largest arms producers in the region and is actively involved in providing military aid to Kyiv, which could change if pro-Russian forces enter the new Bulgarian government.
Over the past month, BSP officials have shown open contacts with the Kremlin, with a Bulgarian MP meeting Dmitry Medvedev in Sochi and Bulgarian counter-intelligence launching an investigation into the party’s hosting of an illegal Russian consulate in the Black Sea city of Varna.
Limiting Russian influence in the government is one of Democratic Bulgaria’s main policy goals, but the formation is also pushing for the imposition of political isolation on MRF New Beginning leader Delyan Peevski, who is under US and UK sanctions for corruption.
“Democratic Bulgaria will not back down from insisting on a declaration for a sanitary cordon around Delyan Peevski,” said Ivaylo Mirchev from Democratic Bulgaria.
Peevski’s party won 11.5% of the vote in October’s snap elections and is the fourth largest political force in Bulgaria’s parliament. The imposition of a political cordon around Peevski is also supported by parties that are members of the liberal ALDE alliance, Euractiv reported on Monday.
The other big issue in the political negotiations is the reform of Bulgaria’s prosecutor’s office, which is structured along Soviet-style lines under the full control of the prosecutor-general, who often intervenes in the political process by launching controversial investigations against politicians.
(Krassen Nikolov | Euractiv.bg)
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