site.btaBulgarian President Comments on Cabinet Situation in Bulgaria

Talking to Bulgarian correspondents here on Friday, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev commented on the situation on the eve of the expected cabinet rotation in his country and the hurdles it may run into.

"For the time being, I am not considering the option of a caretaker cabinet," the head of State said.

In his opinion, whether there will be early parliamentary elections or not depends on the trust inside the power-sharing coalition and the assessment they give themselves.

Radev finds that the incumbent cabinet members are being assessed under "odd" criteria. He cited the case of Defence Minister Todor Tagarev: some of the leaders want him to step down because he is not doing enough for Ukraine but, on the other hand, they want him to stay on because Kyiv likes him very much. 

The President reiterated that when the Cabinet was being formed, he had said that he would like to see a defence minister who would be doing everything possible and would prioritize Bulgaria's security and the development of the state-of-the-art defence capabilities of the Bulgarian Armed Forces. Asked whether Tagarev is doing this, Radev said: "I want to see more."

The President added that it is not clear who bears the responsibility at this point. He explained that if it comes to appointing a caretaker cabinet, he will open the Constitution and will "follow it to the letter". "I must like some of the people from this limited choice, he or she must pick ministers somewhere, we'll see how, I won't be the one to nominate the minister, but I have to formalize it by a decree that I sign, which makes me responsible," Radev said further.

He was referring to the latest amendments to the Constitution, according to which the President no longer has full discretion in appointing a caretaker prime minister. His or her choice will be limited to the chair of the National Assembly, the president of the Supreme Court of Cassation, the governor or a deputy governor of the Bulgarian National Bank, the president or a vice president of the Bulgarian National Audit Office, and the National Ombudsman or a deputy ombudsman. The President must consult the parliamentary groups before appointing a caretaker cabinet on a proposal by the caretaker prime minister.

Radev explained that he cannot be completed to decree the appointment of a caretaker cabinet if he does not agree to its lineup. "This, however, would entail a deep parliamentary and constitutional crisis from which nobody stands to gain," he added.