site.btaUPDATED PM Denkov Comments Negotiations of Upcoming Government Rotation

Speaking to journalists here on Thursday, Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov said he does not want the post of foreign minister as such, but rather wants the voice of Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria to be loud enough so it can be heard abroad. 

Denkov was paying a one-day visit to the Netherlands to confer with his Dutch counterpart Mark Rutte, with whom they discussed issues of bilateral interest and the European agenda.

The Bulgarian Prime Minister said he would rather not get into details surrounding the negotiations of the upcoming government rotation, when he is to step down as prime minister and his position to be taken by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel. There has been friction between CC-DB and GERB, which are the largest two parties in Parliament that support the Government, because GERB want Mariya Gabriel to remain as foreign minister while serving as prime minister after the rotation. 

"I have said on other occasions that when there is a final agreement, we will see the result," Denkov commented the ongoing negotiations for ministerial posts after the rotation. 

What is important is who will be explaining abroad what is happening in Bulgaria and how. The people who have the strongest position when it comes to foreign policy are the prime minister and the foreign minister, Denkov said. 

Asked whether the rotation could happen with a different person than Mariya Gabriel, Denkov said that no such questions are currently being discussed. 

CC-DB want to proceed with the rotation in the way it was agreed on, Denkov said. "After these nine months, let's see if we can move on with a full [four-year government] term in office," the Prime Minister noted. 

Therefore, he said, apart from the implementation of the governance programme, the preparation of a legislative programme until the end of the year will also begin, as well as a legislative and governance programme until the end of the Government's term. "Will it be implemented? Let's hope so," Denkov said. 

Asked whether he and Gabriel were in agreement, Denkov said they were discussing arguments, one way or the other, and there was no final decision at the moment.