site.btaMedia Review: January 26

POLITICS

At a formal ceremony at the Constitutional Court on Friday, Desislava Atanasova and Borislav Belazelkov were sworn in as new members of the Court. The Bulgarian National Radio presented reports on their professional paths so far. Atanasova has come a long way in the ranks of GERB - 14 years as an MP, former health minister, party stalwart, rising steadily to the top positions of power, loyal to her leader Boyko Borissov and keeping her name safe from accusations and scandals, BNR said. Her nomination as a constitutional judge clashed with her modest legal experience at the Ruse psychiatric dispensary, the media outlet pointed out. Belazelkov graduated in law from Sofia University. His career began as a bailiff at Sofia District Court. Until his retirement, he headed a department at the Supreme Court of Cassation, where he worked for 22 years. He served as Bulgarian Judges Association President. In the past he has been repeatedly mentioned as a potential constitutional judge. His star has risen now - as a personal nomination of [Democratic Bulgaria co-leader] Hristo Ivanov, BNR said.

On Nova Television's morning show, constitutional law professor Assoc. Prof. Hristo Paunov said that it is possible that the Constitutional Court will declare the decisions for the election of Atanasova and Belazelkov to be partially unconstitutional. If so, the term in office of the new judges will be seven, not nine years. On January 23, President Radev challenged the constitutionality of the election before the Constitutional Court. The head of State sees "a deliberate attempt by the majority of National Representatives to circumvent the decisions of the Constitutional Court regarding the duration of the term of office". The parliamentary resolutions on Atanasova's and Belazelkov's election, which were gazetted on January 23, explicitly mention that they will serve standard nine-year terms in office. In an interpretative decision, however, which was issued acting on a petition from the President and became effective on January 20, the Constitutional Court ruled that the two should serve for seven years.

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Bulgarian National Television’s morning show featured an interview with Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria – Save Sofia (CC-DB-SS) municipal councillor Andrey Zografski and Vazrazhdane municipal councilor Deyan Nikolov on the failure of Sofia Municipal Council to elect its Chair after several meetings. “Next week there will be a new meeting, initiated by CC-DB-SS, with all political parties. The Council should get to work, Sofia is heading towards total bankruptcy,” Zografski stressed. Nikolov argued that the name of the Chair does not matter, the question is what majority will be formed and how.

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24 Chasa features an extensive interview with the new Bulgarian judge at the European Court of Human Rights Diana Kovatcheva. For the last 5 years, she was occupying the position of Bulgarian Ombudsman, the daily notes. Kovatcheva explains that her experience serves as a good preparation for her new position as „usually the Оmbudsman is the last instance before people take а case to the European Court of Human Rights and due to this she is familiar with the cases against Bulgaria. "This [becoming a judge at the European Court of Human Rights] is my student dream. My whole career, my whole professional path so far has been in one way or another related to the topic of human rights. So this is not a spontaneous decision," she underlined.

In an interview on bTV's morning show, Kovatcheva underlined that her election was not political as at no point was she tied to a political party. "I have always been an expert, including in my capacity as Justice Minister - I was invited as an expert coming from an international NGO," she pointed out.

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Duma reports that BSP Leader Korneliya Ninova met with Japan's Ambassador to Bulgaria Hisashi Michigami. Ninova called for more efforts to develop trade and economic ties between the two countries, the daily notes.

ECONOMY

24 Chasa features an interview with National Customs Agency Director General Pavel Tonev. “We have started active work on the construction of a new border checkpoint, which will be located north of the current checkpoint Kapitan Andreevo - a suitable location for connection with the Maritsa Motorway. The aim is for the new crossing point to accommodate freight traffic because analyses show that by 2026 all possibilities for expanding the capacity of the existing infrastructure will be exhausted,” Tonev pointed out. He also denied allegations of exports of petroleum products in violation of the Russian oil waiver. "A strict organization has been set up to control the export of petroleum products derived from oil imported from Russia. We strictly observe the quotas set by the EU, the information is public and is updated immediately after the export takes place," he stressed.

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Capital.bg has an article on Bulgaria's chances of being accepted into the eurozone in January 2025. "The expectation is that the country will not get a "yes" in the June report because of inflation. And that means shifting the accession date by at least half a year," the media outlet points out. Despite falling inflation, meeting the criterion by mid-year is unlikely, the article states. As of December, the Bulgarian indicator is twice as high as the euro area benchmark and it seems unlikely that this gap will melt to some acceptable values in the coming crucial months. On the positive side, there are no other obstacles this time and this last one is expected to have also fallen by the end of 2024, Capital.bg concludes. On the negative side, any postponement, especially indefinitely, risks the credibility of the country's credit rating and sends negative signals to businesses and investors.

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24 Chasa has an article focusing on the State Budget 2024. It brings us closer to both the euro and the European way of life, the daily quotes Prime Minister Denkov's address at the start of Council of Ministers' Thursday sitting. The policies to promote birth rates and to raise children will be most important for the Government, Denkov pointed out. Funding for in vitro procedures has been increased by 20%, the amount of one-off aid for pregnancy and childbirth has risen by 50%. Textbooks in all core subjects up to 12th grade became free for the first time, the article states.

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Duma quotes a study which shows that in 2023 Bulgarians working abroad sent back to Bulgaria about BGN 1.32 billion. This aid is among the largest investments in the Bulgarian economy. The daily states that there was a 20% increase compared to 2022. Bulgarians working in Germany have sent some EUR 230 million, in US – EUR 209 million, in Spain – EUR 114 million, in the UK – EUR 109 million and in Greece – EUR 71 million, the article says.

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24 Chasa features a study according to which Bulgarians avoid expensive purchases and are setting aside money, but without long strategies.

BULGARIAN STATE RAILWAYS

Telegraph reports that Deutsche Bahn will provide some 70 modern passenger railroad cars on preferential rates and terms to Bulgarian State Railways, citing the Transport Ministry. The project was implemented in less than three months with the support of the German Embassy in Sofia, they daily notes. The Bulgarian State Railways and the German carrier are in the final phase of negotiations, and with the carriages the national railway carrier will modernize about 20% of the currently used trains, which are more than 40 years old. "The rolling stock can reach speeds up to 200 km/h, it is air-conditioned, without compartments and with all passenger amenities," the media outlet quotes Transport Minister Georgi Gvozdeikov as saying. A Bulgarian team is due to visit Germany by mid-February to clarify and finalize delivery and acquisition procedures.