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But none of this caused a crisis, as the Bulgarian government is currently negotiating alternative gas supplies and is completing a “liaison” pipeline with Greece, which will help eliminate Bulgaria’s dependence on Russian natural gas. And despite calls from some politicians for negotiations or concessions with Moscow, the Petkov government has ruled out a new deal with Gazprom after the current contract expires at the end of this year.
But, this attitude is probably not welcomed by some members of the party There is such a people. Deputy Energy Minister Plamen Danailov told Euronews Bulgaria on June 11 that his party had insisted on a “more balanced approach” and postponed any categorical refusal of Russian gas supplies. Later, the Minister of Energy, Alexander Nikolov, also from the party There is such a people, rejected the idea that such objections lay behind the party’s decision to leave the ruling coalition.
But some lawmakers from Petkov’s party, We continue the change, have already started to refer to partners on social networks. There is such a people with the words “Gazprom people” and the Minister of Transport, Nikolay Sabev, has asked is a Gazprom coalition being formed? ”
The decision of There is such a people will either weaken the Government’s ability to find new alternatives to energy supplies to end its dependence on Russian gas, or lead to the formation of a new government with new priorities, that would be better behaved towards Moscow.
This is probably bad news for supporters of Bulgaria’s pro-European path.
New distribution of power
The four government ministers of the party, There is such a people, have submitted their resignations, resignations that will depend on the official acceptance by the prime minister and then Petkov’s proposals in Parliament for their replacement.
But change has already begun.
The three remaining parties in the coalition are a minority in the National Assembly, Bulgaria’s unicameral parliament, and are therefore unable to pass decisions on their own. Parties We continue the change, the Bulgarian Socialist Party and the Democratic Bulgaria control only 109 seats in Parliament, or 11 less to form a 240-seat majority in Parliament.
The deputies of Ka such a people have already started voting like the opposition. Petkov has expressed that he expects to convince 12 deputies of There is such a people to vote on budget amendments in time in order to fix summer pensions and other urgent issues, but such a thing is by no means certain that it can happen.
But on June 13, the outgoing Minister of Sports, Radostin Vassilev, announced that five more deputies of Ka such a people are leaving the party and are expected to support the Government.
The opposition parties GERB (with 59 deputies), the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (with 34 deputies) and Rilindja (with 13 deputies), have a total of 106 seats in Parliament. Opposition parties have warned Petkov that he will not win any support from opposition lawmakers.
Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, meanwhile, has called on parliamentary parties to urgently form a new majority.
All of these lead to one of three possibilities. Petkov’s government can stand alongside the possible implications of such an option. Lawmakers could manage to form a new majority for a successor executive if Petkov’s government falls. Or Radev could appoint a caretaker cabinet ahead of new elections.
None of these three options is likely to convince anyone that the political change initiated by the departure of the party, There is such a people, is good news for the pro-Western future of Bulgaria.
Dream for the euro
In late May, the Petkov government launched an operational plan to adopt the eurozone common currency starting in January 2024. But the decision was made without the votes of the coalition parties, the Socialists and There is such a people. These two parties support the adoption of the common European currency, but initially want to see analysis of the possible consequences of using the euro currency.
Lawmakers from the party There is such a people of Trifonov, have submitted proposals to suspend this plan until the National Assembly approves the analysis of the effects associated with the transition to the use of the euro. Deputies from the opposition party, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, on the other hand, did not oppose this position, but demanded clarity. Rilindja party, meanwhile, has spoken out against the adoption of the decision on the use of the euro currency.
The government plan envisions state-specific steps until the adoption of the euro, including amending laws and guidelines for banks and government institutions. Such technical work takes time. If the Government slips from carefully adhering to the steps of this plan, the January 2024 target could easily be lost.
The European Commission’s latest report, published on June 1st, says that currently only Croatia meets all the requirements that allow it to adopt the common currency early next year. Bulgaria has not yet met the criterion of price stability – meaning it suffers from excessive inflation – and has not yet adopted the necessary legal rules.
Any weakened government, or a new government that would be more skeptical of the euro, is likely to slow down the process and thus prevent Bulgaria from achieving its 2024 target.
Macedonian neighbor
Tifonov, through a video message, announced the withdrawal of his party, There is such a people, from the Government emphasizing that “there are two reasons why the coalition is not working and why we have no place in it: Macedonia and the fact “There is no more money in this country.”
He accused Petkov of “high treason” and of pursuing a policy different from that approved by the National Assembly. Both allegations stem from Bulgaria’s veto since 2019 on the start of northern Macedonia’s EU membership negotiations.
Bulgarian Foreign Minister Teodora Genchovska, also from Ka Such a People, said she had been excluded from meetings on the issue, which Petkov had discussed with European leaders about possible steps towards removing the Bulgarian veto.
Petkov responded that Genchovska’s accusations were “false news”. On June 9, he met in Sofia with EU Enlargement Commissioner Oliver Varhelyi, and the two leaders insisted there was no agreement to lift the veto. Petkov added that he was working to make the EU a guarantor of Bulgaria’s demands, including the introduction of the Bulgarians in the Macedonian Constitution, ending hate speech and clarifying historical disputes between Sofia and Skopje. On June 11, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz also said there was still no agreement on the issue. Meanwhile, Bulgarian President Radev said on June 9 that it was the duty of the Government to “keep the veto in force”.
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