I expect Rumen Radev's new government to make serious changes in the structures of state power. Rumen Radev will be personally responsible for exercising a huge part of the power in Bulgaria - not only the legislative, but also the executive. We will have a new degree of large-scale concentration of power in the hands of Radev. This was explained in an interview with Nova News by political scientist Prof. Ognyan Minchev.
He specified that over time we will see what type of changes Radev will make in the governance of the country - whether they will be reformist or “transforming state power in directions that will not please everyone“.
According to him, the central question in Rumen Radev's administration is whether he will introduce “new formats of oligarchic control“ or will he move towards restoring the legitimacy of the laws in the country.
“I personally am not optimistic that we will have a reform of the state in the direction of a significant reduction in corruption“, added Prof. Minchev.
The political scientist explained that the dismantling of the “Borisov-Peevski“ model will begin with the removal of the figures placed by the two party leaders over the years, but stressed that it remains to be seen what model will be replaced.
„In any case, we are not talking about a new prime minister and a new team, because we have known Mr. Radev in his capacity as president for nearly a decade. We also know his official cabinets, which were governed in a one-man manner. And now his future ministers will have even broader powers. So from this point of view we can assume what the style of governance will be“, commented Ognyan Minchev.
Regarding the former president's pro-Russian orientation, the political scientist expressed the opinion that he will probably try to convince Brussels to lift sanctions on Russia and move to dialogue with Moscow, but expressed confidence that the European Union will in no way soften its position regarding the Kremlin.
“Bulgaria is too dependent on the EU when it comes to our defense and our prosperity. I do not expect a more general pro-Russian policy from the new government, Russia itself does not need a “partner“ or “Trojan horse“ against Brussels. "Currently, Moscow needs political actors who can lead a policy of compromise," said Prof. Minchev.
However, he did not rule out the risk of Russian influence penetrating deeper into the Bulgarian state under Rumen Radev's rule, mainly through personnel policy in institutions.