site.btaGERB, United Patriots Agree on Joint Governance Programme

GERB, United Patriots Agree on Joint Governance Programme

Sofia, April 13 (BTA) - The negotiating process on drafting a joint strategic programme of the future coalition government has been completed, United Patriots co-leader Valeri Simeonov told a joint news briefing in Parliament with GERB leader Boyko Borissov on Thursday.

The governance programme of GERB and the United Patriots covers the period until 2021, Simeonov said.

Borissov thanked his colleagues for the concessions and the efforts made. He stressed that they deliberately refrained from discussing portfolios and a structure of the future cabinet at the negotiations. "The programme itself and the priorities would have been mixed up if a particular partner was considered for a particular ministry," he explained. "That is why we decided to sign the document first and find the most suitable people later. We will be dealing with this from Monday on," Borissov added.

"Regardless of the differences we have had, we are duty-bound for the sake of Bulgaria's interests to arrive at a joint programme and to implement joint governance because there are no other options," Simeonov commented. He added that any cooperation whatsoever with the Movement for Rights and Freedoms is inadmissible, as far as the United Patriots are concerned.

"Had we made no concessions, we would have been compelled to hold new elections and would have ended up where we started," Borissov said. In his words, considering all international factors, as well as "the weak caretaker Cabinet", more months of interregnum pose a risk. The GERB leader said that the question of the pensions was a "watershed" in the negotiations.