site.btaMedia Review: October 9

Israel in State of War

Trud covers the Hamas attacks against Israel on two full inside pages. The stories include the evacuation of 92 Bulgarians from Tel Aviv by the government Airbus and a backgrounder on the Palestinian group and the Gaza Strip.

In its two-page coverage, Telegraph quotes Bulgarians who witnessed the attacks in Israel and were evacuated to Sofia. A signed analysis is headlined "Hamas and Israel Bogged Down in New War."

24 Chasa also devotes two whole inside pages to the subject under the blanket headline "Israel Is in War! Disaster for Mosad: Hundreds Dead, Thousands Injured after Hamas Attack". Journalist Georgi Milkov writes in an analysis that "in recent decades the Israeli political elite seems to have succeeded to make the world forget about the Palestinian problem. It did it so well that the Israeli political elite itself forgot about the Palestinians and focused on its own navel, i.e. on its infighting for struggle, the corruption scandals, the series of unprincipled coalitions, the series of judicial reforms not for the sake of justice and the rule of law but for the sake of ad hoc politics and partisanship. Israel should become a textbook example of how the erosion of political morality in a civilized state is the worst threat to its national security - more so than even the world's most sinister terrorist group."  

In a front-page comment in Duma, headlined "The Promised Land", Tanya Gluhcheva writes that "strangely, most countries proved to be empathic with Tel Aviv. Even more strangely, the countries in question (with minor exceptions) are pro-American-minded. The Palestinians are 'the bad guys', Hamas are terrorists, murderers and what not. Do they not sustain casualties, too? Are their people not dying, too? The US immediately offered military aid to Netanyahu, and the US is always eager to shed blood rather than settle the issue peacefully. This is precisely what lead to believe that there is something rotten. Again, we are witnessing unheard-of cruelty, death of innocent and massive destruction. Will we ever learn a lesson? The latest example is the war between Russia and Ukraine where, too, there is talk of occupied territories, there are daily missile strikes, hundreds of thousands are forced to leave their homes, to ditch their lives and look for a new place for a fresh beginning or hide in bomb shelters..." "Ultimately, the Jews may have to seek a new Promised Land. History repeats itself, first as a tragedy, second as a farce. At this point, is it the tragedy or the farce? What matters is that at least for the time being we will forget about Zelenskyy. Even though he reminded of himself by his latest statement but probably he has realized that the military aid that had been promised to him will already be redirected elsewhere."

In an exclusive interview for Nova TV on Monday morning, Israel's Ambassador in Sofia Yosef Levi Sfari said that the Hamas militants "are not human beings but brutes committing things that democratic societies cannot imagine." The diplomat was adamant that Israel does not plan to capture Gaza. In his opinion, such an attack cannot be carried out without the support of a third party. Levi Sfari thanked Bulgaria for the assistance it has rendered to the Israeli people. "The US supports us by what we need: information, military aid. We coordinate with the Americans, they are out best allies," the ambassador stressed.

On the same show Miroslav Zafirov, a UN diplomat who was involved in the Israel-Palestine negotiations, said that Hamas has declared a full-scale war on Israel, which is neither an escalation nor a local conflict. In his words, it is crucial to prevent an expansion of the conflict northward, towards Lebanon. 

Former deputy foreign minister Lyubomir Kyuchukov said in a Bulgarian National Radio interview on Monday morning that he expects the war to escalate in the short term and a massive Israeli retaliation, which is already underway. As yet another effect, the negotiations between Israel and Saudi Arabia on the restoration of diplomatic relations may come under "a huge question mark". The geopolitical context is complicated as a level of confrontation and a number of regional and global factors engaged in the Middle East processes. The expert sees a connection between the timing of the attacks and the global leadership struggle between the US and China, in this particular case over the Middle East which is strategically important as a source of energy resources and logistical routes. "While the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank is trying to find a way to stand up for the Palestinian cause within the framework of the US - Israel - Saudi Arabia, Hamas has obviously decided to torpedo this thaw between Saudi Arabia and Israel, which could erode Saudi support for the Palestinian cause and backtrack the recognition of the Palestinian State."

Interviewed on National Television on Monday morning, Prof. Vladimir Chukov said that Hamas decided to attack Israel back in the summer. "The thaw of Saudi-Israeli relations will result in a completely new status quo in the whole region. An indisputable leader like Saudi Arabia will serve as a role model for a number of other Muslim World countries," Assoc. Prof. Mira Mayer commented in the same show. She said that there are no facts implicating Russia in the terrorist attack. 

On Monday's morning show of bTV, journalist Asen Agov said that the purpose of this conflict and of the Russia-North Korea-Iran "sanction axis" was to push up the oil price, which is already the case even today. "We are all interested in Israel strengthening and preventing any such attacks despite having such excellent services. The link is obvious and it exists in some way. Whether it was planned jointly with Moscow or no, the result benefits Russia. Hence we conclude that intervention in the preparation and implementation is highly probable," said former defence minister Nikolay Svinarov. "We should congratulate the Government on the speed and adequacy with which it managed to extract our fellow Bulgarians from Israel," said Borislav Tzekov. He is surprised by the silence of President Rumen Radev and hopes that he will convene the Consultative Council for National Security. Tzekov sees the initiative for a transport corridor between India and Europe as an important reason for the terrorist war because this corridor represents economic and geopolitical competition and alternative to the link and corridor of Iran and Russia for the export of Indian goods.

Constitutional Amendments

In Trud, constitutional law expert Borislav Tzekov argues that the proposed constitutional amendment making dual nationals eligible for top jobs in the land (president, vice president, prime minister, cabinet member, member of Parliament) is "yet another attempt to dismantle bulwarks of the nation state. Tzekov admits that 16 EU Member States do not impose such a ban but insists that another 11 Member States do for specific national, historical, political and socio-cultural reasons. The author points out that dual nationality may give rise to a conflict of loyalties and that such a ban has always existed in Bulgaria since 1878.

Constitutional law lecturer Nataliya Kiselova said on Bulgarian National Television on Saturday that the planned abolition of the caretaker cabinet will not go through and the presidential powers will not be limited to the extent intended. "They will rather scrap the second term of office of the prosecutor general and, probably, of the supreme court presidents," she noted. The associate professor also expects the change of the national day to be dropped, too. In her opinion, the setting up of a common body to control the prosecutors' and the judges' council will trigger the most heated debate. 

Parties in Present Political Situation

Interviewed for Trud, Prof. Antoaneta Hristova points out that, much to her regret, the establishment parties are giving up ideology. GERB is leaning leftward and is being engulfed by neoliberalism. There is room for new parties to fill a huge empty space, especially in the patriotic spectrum. "Parties that should be really independent of sundry embassies rather than such that are apparently bound to one diplomatic mission or another," the expert specifies. "Their leaders should be able to convince Bulgarians that they will defend our interests rather than the interests of external factors." Hristova describes the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) as "a stable liberal party which does not stand a chance of being toppled, despite its rather odd current role which is even negative in Bulgarian politics."

Borissov Warns of Power-Sharers' BGN 266 Mln Scam

Trud frontpages a report, quoting GERB leader Boyko Borissov as saying that on Friday evening the Nikolay Denkov Cabinet had launched a grant scheme for photovoltaics with batteries under which BGN 266 million under the Recovery and Resilience Plan will be shared among companies close to Continue the Change. Borissov argued that this violates a ban imposed by the National Assembly. GERB MP Delyan Dobrev specified in a Facebook post that only companies with assets exceeding EUR 60 million for 2022 are eligible to apply.

Healthcare

Bulgarian Medical Association President Ivan Madzharov says in a two-page interview for Telegraph that, unlike Europe, where entire groups of medicines are sometimes unavailable, in Bulgaria the shortage affects a particular original medicinal product that cannot be replaced by a generic equivalent. The Association opposes the sale of medicines by vending machines even for over-the-counter medicines. Dr Madzharov notes the lack of a promotion campaign for preventive checkups. At this point, 38% of physicians in Bulgaria are aged over 60, and 63% are over 50. In ten years' time, all doctors will be 63% of the present number. A long-term programme is needed to address the shortage of personnel. The interviewee believes that the number of hospitals in the country needs to be reduced. In his opinion, the planned National General Pediatric Hospital should focus on the really serious and complicated cases.

In an interview for 24 Chasa, Prof. Dimitar Bulanov, Dean of the Sofia University Faculty of Medicine, says that Bulgarian medical school graduates tend to leave for Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Britain and other medically advanced countries because they can work there far more intensively, the conditions there enable them to work more but also to earn more and have a far higher standard of living than at home. They can become fine specialists earlier, get public respect, decent pay and predictable living - these conditions are insufficiently secure in Bulgaria, Bulanov says. Abroad, Bulgarian doctors have the opportunity to practise in modern, high-tech and stable hospitals in terms of both financing and infrastructure, organization and staff. The interviewee notes that the lack of nurses in both quantity and quality is a huge problem at hospitals. He argues that, contrary to the existing regulation, the number of nurses should be bound to the number of beds rather than to the number of doctors.

Miners' and Energy Workers' Protest

Interviewed on Bulgarian National Radio on Saturday morning, financial expert Evgenii Kanev said that it is completely untrue that the country's entire energy sector would collapse because of state-owned enterprises that maintain a huge workforce. "The problem is not what all these people will do but that they do not want to be anything else except miners, even though they pollute the air and cost too much to our society, regardless of whether they are needed or not, they insist on doing this and nothing else." "How many citizens are aware that these power plants cost us EUR 2.5 billion in medicines, medical treatment and absences from work?" the interviewee asks. In his opinion, the statement of a trade union leader that electricity production would have been fine if it were not for the EU trade in emission allowances is "a wonderful example of exploiting people's ignorance." Nor is it true that electricity would not be cheaper without the allowances because renewable electricity is cheaper now. People imagine that, just as 12-13 years ago, renewable electricity is still subsidized and is therefore very expensive. In reality, it is not subsidized and is therefore cheap because there is demand for it and the equipment prices have fallen steeply." "Miners must be helped, but this does not mean that they should keep exactly these jobs that expose the environment and the nation's health to a risk. These miners have been used for political purposes for a long time now. The power plants have been deeply involved in politics, including by financing political parties. All political interests are used very crassly when such protests are staged, including when an "enemy" government has to be shaken. All opponents to the present Government and supporters of the protest are actually working for Bulgaria destabilization. We know whose interests are served by a destabilization in the conditions of a war. What are our national interests according to those people [the miners and the grain farmers]? To leave the EU and become a grey area like Belarus or to serve Russian interests?" According to Kanev, the dozen or so families behind the protesters were created by the two parties that have been running agriculture and the energy sector over the years: GERB and the MRF. In actual fact, they insist that want to carry out some reform but only if their people manage these reforms. The anti-government attacks of GERB and the MRF are always about persons, not about policies, the expert says.

Agriculture

In an interview for www.capital.bg, Atidzhe Alieva-Veli MEP of the MRF/Renew Europe Group says that adequate financing of small farmers is exceedingly important for the EU, targeting guaranteed food security, high value added, high competitiveness, modernization and innovations in the context of the Green Pact, acquisition of skills and knowledge, and attracting young people to agriculture. Member States' strategic plans will be modified to respond to the consequences of the war in Ukraine, the interviewee says. She insists on the need to ease the administrative burden due to the complicated measures and numerous requirements under the Rural Development Programme, which may result in inefficient budget allocation. Measures have been taken at the national level to reduce the concentration of direct payments on a small number of agricultural producers. The EUR 100,000 ceiling on direct payments for the current programming period is a third of the level for the previous period. "Bulgarian farmers are disadvantaged by getting the lowest direct payment subsidies in the EU. This makes them less competitive compared to their European counterparts, especially regionwide," Alieva-Veli points out. She is adamant that there should be full convergence of direct payments despite the fierce resistance from the "old" Member States.

Green Transition

Expert Kristiyan Dimitrov of Greenpeace said in a National Radio interview on Monday morning that energy community enable people to get actively involved in the energy transition. "They can share the costs of an investment and allocate the electricity they produce. They are also able to share up a profit if they produce excess power." Dimitrov says that despite enabling legislation that has been enacted, no mechanism has been set up, the procedure is complicated by unnecessary document requirement, which explains why there is just one energy community in Bulgaria. He notes that the law does not provide for financial concessions by the State even though this is provided for in the Renewable Energy Directive.

European Investment Bank

24 Chasa has a page-long interview with European Investment Bank (EIB) Vice-President Lilyana Pavlova, who discusses Bulgaria's chances of getting EIB financing, the bank's investments in climate action and energy transformation, and her experience of the four-year term in office

Plovdiv Fair

24 Chasa runs a page-long analysis of the present and future of the Plovdiv Fair, whose fate has been the subject of controversy and debate for years now. Economy and Industry Minister Bogdan Bogdanov has launched a new attempt to revive the company. He is trying to regain state control over the fair because the company is being managed ineffectively, the daily writes. When it began in 1892, the Plovdiv Fair occupied 82,000 sq m, had exhibitors from 24 countries and drew 161,000 visitors. Now the Bulgarian fair has a total space of 352,000 sq m, double the 182,000 sq m of the Thessaloniki Fair. On the other hand, 200 exhibitors came to Plovdiv in 2022 and 1,500 to Thesaloniki. The visitors to the venue in Bulgaria were 15,000, compares to 210,000 in Greece. A new strategy for the development of the Plovdiv Fair has been developed by a team of the Ministry of Economy and Industry, targeting the attraction of key industries like the circular economy, renewable energy sources etc. The Plovdiv Fair should turn into a platform for the presentation of new technologies and innovations and should support start-ups by reduced fees.

Demographic Crisis

In a page-long item contributed to Trud, Socialist MEP Elena Yoncheva writes that Bulgarian society is ready to welcome some 300,000 ethnic Bulgarians resident abroad, mainly in Ukraine and Moldova, given that 167 settlements in Bulgaria are now completely depopulated and 592 have a population of 1 or 2. "The State is unable to attract expatriate Bulgarians because it is not an orderly place to live. Corruption puts off investments and drives people to despair. Thefts rule out proper roads, motorways, well paid doctors and affordable health services. The conditions for raising children are inadequate. There are working poor, and pensioners are in dire straits. Security and prospects are lacking. That is why we should pool our efforts to overcome inequalities," the author concludes.