Bulgaria in the midst of a political crisis after the overthrow of its government

by time news

On the eve of the European Council, Bulgaria fell back into a new political crisis. The government of Liberal Prime Minister Kiril Petkov was overthrown by a motion of no confidence on Wednesday June 22.

The text was adopted by 123 deputies, while 116 voted against, out of the 240 seats, announced the Deputy Speaker of Parliament Miroslav Ivanov. This is a first in the democratic history of this country of 6.5 million inhabitants, the poorest in the European Union.

The Bulgarians have already lived through three legislative elections last year. Until the sensational entry into politics of pro-European liberal Petkov, a graduate of Harvard University who decided to wipe the slate clean of corruption after a decade of the reign of the controversial Boïko Borissov.

If its objective was initially to “to transform Bulgaria into a normal European country”, the war in Ukraine has upset its agenda. The ragtag coalition formed in December quickly split and by early June it lost support from the anti-system party “There is such a people” (ITP).

Ukrainian crisis

In this country traditionally close to Moscow, the war “has heightened divisions, weakening the government”, explains Rouslan Stefanov of the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD). Despite its heavy dependence on Russian energy, Sofia did not give in to the Kremlin’s request to open a ruble account for gas payment and therefore suffered a cut in deliveries.

This unprecedented event played “a key role in the current crisis”estimates Ognyan Mintchev, director of the Institute of international studies of the capital. “The Bulgarian oligarchs who received commissions” found themselves deprived of income, “which aggravated tensions within the coalition as well as between business circles and the government”he said.

In opposition, the Gerb, the conservative party of Boïko Borissov, rushed into the breach and tabled a motion, pointing “the failure of the government’s economic and financial policy”in a context of soaring prices.

Another file came to sow the discord: the delivery of weapons to Ukraine. Within the government, while most were in favor of it, the socialists stubbornly refused to respond to kyiv’s demands.

Finally, the Bulgarian veto on the launch of negotiations for accession of North Macedonia to the EU was a source of contention between the parties of the coalition for reasons of historical and cultural disputes.

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