site.btaDefence Minister Ordered to Appear for Questioning over MiG-29 Repair Deal

Defence Minister Ordered to Appear for Questioning over MiG-29 Repair Deal

Sofia, November 22 (BTA) - Defence Minister Nickolay Nenchev was ordered Tuesday to appear for questioning at the Sofia Investigative Service (SIS) in connection with a deal with Poland for repair of Bulgarian MiG-29 jets.

In a comment for the press, Nenchev said that he expects to be charged for his role in the deal but would not provide further details. He also said that he believes that the contract with Poland was the most advantageous for Bulgaria.

Nenchev has already been questioned for the MiG deal but no information has come from the prosecution office, writes mediapool.bg. Its story recalls that in late 2015 Nenchev declined Russia's services and signed a contract with Poland for repair of six engines for the old Soviet jets - which, predictably, caused a strong reaction in Moscow and it threatened to challenge the Bulgaria-Poland deal in court. The Russians claimed that they were the only ones with a licence to do the repairs, writes mediopool.bg.

"Nenchev wanted a second deal with Poland for full maintenance of the jets but it turned out that the Polish contractor lacked capacity for that. As a result, several weeks ago he returned to Russian orbit and his Ministry purchased engines for the MiGs again from Russia but through a Bulgarian dealer," the mediapool story goes.

Nenchev was questioned by the Sofia Investigative Service last May but it has never been announced which aspect of the deal is in the focus of the investigators' attention - or what are the reasons for the probe, the e-zine says.

The Defence Minister was in SIS Tuesday along with several other government ministers for questioning in a probe for a detrimental vaccines deal with Turkey. Outgoing Health Minister Peter Moskov faces mismanagement and malfeasance in office for this deal.

Investigators summoned most government ministers during this probe because the decision for the controversial vaccines deal was made by the government.

Education Minister Meglena Kuneva was also questioned but she declined any comments for the press.