site.btaMedia Review: February 7

AGRICULTURE SECTOR PROTESTS

A main topic in most publications on Wednesday, including Trud, 24 Chasa, Sega, Duma, Mediapool, Telegraph, as well as on Wednesday morning programmes,  was the indefinite strike of grain producers that began on Tuesday, blocking major roads across the country. 

Sega notes that "it is curious" why the conclusion to beginning protests was reached after the state promised on Sunday to provide grain producers with more subsidies if they prove losses for 2023. The daily adds that, surprisingly, the National Grain Producers Association called the state's methodology for calculating loss "lacking competent economic expertise".

Trud and Telegraph quote Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov who said that the Government is ready with the main points in a new memorandum that they will propose to farmers. "We are waiting for them to continue the talks," said Denkov at a media briefing, adding that the Government is ready to address all the requests that have been made, but draws the line at supporting profitable companies. 

On the air of Bulgarian National Television (BNT), Plamen Abrovski former head of the parliamentary committee on agriculture explained that farmers are on strike because of a lack of policy in the sector and a lack of communication with the sector. 

On Wednesday morning, NOVA hosted a discussion with representatives of the agriculture sector. Simeon Karakolev, head of the National Sheep and Goat Breeding Association said that the farmers have yet to review the Government's new proposal and whether it is relevant to the situation. His commented that the whole concept of these protests is that everyone is at a loss. Mariana Miltenova from the National Union of Gardeners said that her sector has been mostly isolated until now, but that they will attend talks with the Government if invited. She noted that the budget proposed for the so-called "sensitive sectors", including fruit and vegetable production, is much lower than last year, and that against the background of war, drought, cold, rising prices of resources and other problems, the industry survived last year precisely thanks to aid. Miltenova  added that the reason why so many fruits and vegetables are imported from abroad into the supposedly fertile Bulgarian lands is the policy that has been in place for 20 years. Petko Simeonov from the Organic Beekeeping Association said that problems in the beekeeping sector have accumulated in recent years and have now spilled over due to a lack of strategy for the development of the sector and unfair dumping of fake honey and other bee products. Association of Agricultural Producers Ventsislav Varbanov noted that he is not optimistic about the Government's approach.

 
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Duma quotes Atanas Vassilev, a member of the Board of the Bulgarian Agrarian Chamber, who warned in a BNR-Radio Sofia interview that protests will intensify and will include the wine sector and grape producers. He argued that the industry needs a clear and transparent methodology, and his colleagues want to see the expert analyses, if there are any. Vassilev stressed that only 16,800 hectares of wine vineyards remain in the country, as a lot of land was destroyed, or abandoned due to unprofitability. He warned that bankruptcies are coming and that the industry is disappearing. He recommended that in the Wine Act, which is currently under public discussion, the part on spirits should be separated and not only one branch organization should be regulated.

POLITICS

Trud and 24 Chasa quotes Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel, who said that an analysis of the work of all ministries prior to the upcoming government rotation in March is almost completed. Gabriel said that talks will be held with the ministers once again regarding some of the measures to take place. She noted that it is necessary to decide what the next goals are, since the management programme until the end of 2024 was focused on stability. 

Sega publishes a look at the way the 49th National Assembly adopted new laws, noting that it follows its long-standing practice of not consulting anyone when debating new legislative proposals. Nine out of ten bills introduced in the current National Assembly have not been discussed with the people and groups that will be affected by the adoption, according to the statistics of the National Center for Parliamentary Studies, a sociological unit of the National Assembly. The centre recently published such a study for the period from April 12 to December 28, 2023. When it comes to about 88.9% of bills, there was no information about public consultations or public discussions organized by their proponents. In 92.9 percent of bills, the viewpoints of  interested parties were missing. Only 14.1% of the bills were subject to scientific expertise or research. Nine out of ten bills did not include any measures to inform people of what is contained in the new laws, the study shows.

24 Chasa quotes expert Prof. Milena Stefanova, who said that there is no legal procedure by which an elected Municipal Council can resign. In order for it to that to happen, all municipal councilors must resign and the next ones on the must list refuse to take up positions. Stefanova's comment was regarding the stale-mate in Sofia Municipal Council, and its inability to elect a chair for months. She added that there there are no options for holding new elections.

In a NOVA interview, GERB-UDF MP Delyan Dobrev said that there is still no clarity about the Cabinet after the rotation in March. The only pre-arranged matter, that Denkov would become minister of education, was not respected by CC, as Denkov is pushing to become foreign minister, Dobrev said. This means that GERB will not have a single ministry in the new cabinet, he noted, adding that Mariya Gabriel's profile suggests that she should remain foreign minister because she has experience in this field, while Denkov does not.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Mediapool writes that the European Commission appointed Yordanka Chobanova as the new head of its Representation in Bulgaria. The date from which her appointment will take effect will be determined at a later stage, the press center of the EC said. 

24 Chasa and Mediapool report that a delegation of Bulgarian MPs, led by National Assembly Chair Rosen Zhelyazkov, visited Ukraine and confirmed support for the European integration of Kyiv and the integrity of Ukraine. The delegation included Daniel Mitov, head the delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, Stanislav Anastasov, head of the Permanent Delegation of the National Assembly to the OSCE PA, Chair of the Friendship group Bulgaria – Ukraine Ivaylo Mirchev.

Sega reports that, according to information from the Foreign Ministry, the sailors from the  Galaxy Leader ship hijacked in the Red Sea, including the Bulgarian captain  and first mate, are fine, alive and well and accommodated in a hotel. Minister of Transport Georgi Gvozdeikov said on bTV that their return to Bulgaria is currently being organized in coordination with the Foreign Ministry. Minister Gvozdeikov also said that negotiations for the release of the Bulgarian sailors from the other hijacked ship Rouen are also at the final stage. 

Trud, Sega, Mediapool and Telegraph all report that the court in Edirne has sentenced a Turkish national to life imprisonment for the killing of Bulgarian border police officer Petar Bachvarov in 2022. The defendants in the case were two brothers, shepherds who worked in the villages of Odrin. Engin Erguvan, the man who shot Bachvatov with a hunting rifle, was sentenced to life imprisonment. His brother Mustafa was given a suspended sentence.

Trud quotes a 45-minute interview on the Russian-language RTVI television broadcast on Tuesday, with Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria Eleonora Mitrofanova.  In the interview, Mitrofanova did not rule out the possibility of Soviet monuments being taken back to Russia since they are unwanted or dismantled in Bulgaria. She specified, however, that the Soviet Army Monument, the dismantling of which cause much controversy in Bulgaria,  was cut into pieces and it would take a lot of money and a lot of work to put it back together. The Russian Ambassador noted that the current situation with the monuments in Bulgaria originates precisely from the monument Soviet Army Monument, "which they have been trying to remove from the centre of Sofia since 1992". The situation with the removal of the Alyosha Monument in Plovdiv is still unresolved, she said.  She also stated that it is absolutely ignored that Bulgaria was on the side of Hitler's Germany and that it was the Soviet army and the Soviet leadership that made it possible to preserve Bulgaria within its current borders. 

HOME AFFAIRS

Trud reports that the National Palace of Culture (NDK) has a new management. The members of the Management Board were registered in the Commercial Register. Those selected by competition, Andrijana Petkova, Desislav Danov and Nina Naydenova, were listed as representatives of the state, while Ivanka Veselinova and Nadia Mironova were listed as independent members. At their first meeting, the members of the new leadership of NDK elected Petkova as executive director and Veselinova as chair of the Board of Directors.

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Mediapool, Sega, Trud, 24 Chasa report that the case of Martin “The Notary” Bozhanov's murder on January 31, and the decade-long inactivity of the institutions was referred to the highest state level. After the Notary's murder, evidence of his close ties to magistrates through which he exerted influence became public. The National Assembly will establish an ad-hoc committee to investigate the activities of Bozhanov during his lifetime, at the initiative of Delyan Peevski (Movement of Rights and Freedoms), as well as of  Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria. The initiative was also supported by GERB-UDF, and thus by all power-holding parties. Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov ordered an inspection of all files related to Bojanov.

24 Chasa also quotes Bulgarian Socilist Party (BSP) leader Korneliya Ninova, who said that the BSP supports all parliamentary mechanisms for clarifying the truth, but noted that they are hardly the solution. For years there was information about the activities of the Notary's criminal group and no one took action, Ninova stressed.

Sega writes that the District Court in Vratsa has ordered the Kozloduy NPP to pay BGN 25,000 in costs in the SLAPP case it brought against its employee Nataliya Stancheva. After uproar over the case, the state-owned company withdrew its half-a-million BGN claim against former employee Stancheva and her mother over abuse of rights and libel.  The claim was lodged in July 2023 before the current Kozloduy CEO took office. The N-plant claimed damages in tort for reports of wrongdoing submitted to competent institutions by the respondents, based on information provided by the N-plant itself and concerning a medical centre located in the Kozloduy campus and allegedly operating in violation of the law.

Trud, Sega, Mediapool, Telegraph and 24 Chasa report that the head of the Interior Ministry's Internal Security Directorate, Georgi Georgiev, has been dismissed from office until the disciplinary proceedings initiated against him conclude. So far, there is no information on what the violation was. The suspension comes a day after the arrest of a General Directorate Combating Organized Crime (DGCOC) employee suspected of espionage.

Telegraph, Sega, Mediapool, Trud report that the DGCOC employee arrested for espionage in favour of Russia transmitted not only Bulgarian data, but also sensitive information to partner services from EU countries. He provided the data to Russian intelligence, said the prosecutor overseeing the case, Angel Kanev, in a special briefing on the case. The DGCOC employee was detained as early as Monday morning and has already been formally charged, facing a prison sentence of up to 15 years. DGCOC Director Yavor Serafimov stated that the detainee is a 57-year-old man, a long-time employee of the directorate who has been in the system of the Interior Ministry since 1993. 

DEFENCE

24 Chasa quotes Defence Minister Todor Tagarev, who said that hostile influence in the country is definitely an issue since there are forces that invest significant resources with such goals. When asked if the Ministry of Defence is being investigated in connection with the espionage scandal for security breaches, Tagarev said that there are mechanisms that work constantly.

Telegraph and Mediapool report that the Ministry of Defence will possibly terminate 8 contracts for the repair and modernization of the Graf Ignatievo Air Base, as the companies cannot fulfill them. The Ministry is in a very difficult position as the base must be ready by early next year to receive the newly purchased F-16 Block 70 fighter jets. If this does not happen, Bulgaria may find itself in the uncomfortable position of paying rent to store the new aircraft.

ECONOMY

Sega writes that Delyan Dobrev, GERB MP and head of the Parliamentary Energy Committee, presented data on the Lukoil Neftochim oil refinery's rapid transition from almost 100% Russial oil to 0% on his Facebook page. Contrary to the claims of pessimistic analyses, fuel prices in Bulgaria did not skyrocket due to the complete switch to non-Russian oil, the daily notes.

Duma reports that the Bulgarian Stock Exchange is considering offering companies that their shares be traded in EUR even before Bulgaria's official entry into the eurozone. Bulgarian Stock Exchange CEO Manyu Moravenov stressed that joining the currency union will be of key importance for greater interest in the capital market in the country, because it will become attractive to international institutional investors.

24 Chasa, Mediapool, Sega reported that a decision on the adoption of the Bill on Renewable Energy Sources in Maritime Spaces will not be made before the opinions against it and scientific data are taken into account. This was discussed at a round table on the topic on Tuesday. Currently, there are negative opinions against the possibility of building RES in the Black sea from the tourism industry, fishing, environmental protection and non-governmental organizations.

24 Chasa notes that Bulgaria, Romania and Greece are exploring the possibilities of building common wind farms in the Black Sea. This became clear within the framework of the Black Sea Energy Week international conference on investments in renewable energy sources in Bucharest.

Telegraph notes that so far there is no recorded significant increase in travel to Schengen countries after March 31, 2024, when Bulgaria will join the area by air and sea, but it is still early to for, a conclusion. There is a possibility that Bulgaria can lose some tourists, for example to Romania, as it will be easier to cross the air borders.

Mediapool writes that, according to a study by the Bulgarian Association of Hotel Executives (BAHE), there is an increase in hoteliers'expectation for Bulgarian tourists (from 35% to 41%). In terms of foreign markets, there is no major shift with mostly Romanian tourists (62%), followed by British (30%) and German (28%) tourists choosing to visit the country. They are followed by tourists from Poland (23%), North Macedonia and Israel with 15% each and Czech tourists (13%).