The positioning of the American planes on “Bezmer“ means indirect support for the war in Iran. These planes have no business in Bulgaria and our involvement in this way creates a risk for our security and our image in the EU. We did not find the right way to deal with the situation. This was stated by MEP Christian Vigenin to bTV.
Regarding the war in Ukraine, he commented: “Obviously, Prime Minister Radev and the government are trying to reposition Bulgaria; without isolating themselves, to affirm a different approach to the EU. It is difficult because this requires a wise approach to this type of message. It seemed as if we were trying to sit on two chairs, and not sit on a third, different chair.
About what happened with the Kiev Declaration, he said: “It was not good. Regardless of whether you signed or not, you agreed to a declaration in which the name of Bulgaria is present. Such texts are agreed upon in advance, that is, Bulgaria is committed to what is written there, regardless of whether there is a signature or not.“
He drew attention to the fact that a person with no experience was appointed as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs - Hristo Dikanski, emphasizing that given that the minister has no experience in this environment, there should have been an experienced team behind her.
“You cannot complain to everyone - if you have a national position, it must be very solidly motivated. We are getting into two problem lines - support for the American operation and the apparent reluctance to follow the previous policy. We are in a very complicated situation in terms of foreign policy positioning, things must be done smartly and carefully from now on“, he has an opinion.
On Bulgaria's position regarding the latest package of sanctions against Russia, Vigenin specified: “I welcome with sympathy the government's attempts to say that this and that is important for Bulgaria. Whether it was clearly explained is another matter. We defended certain positions.“
According to him, Radev is right that other approaches should be sought, because sanctions do not lead to the expected result.
His assessment of Radev's administration is not unambiguous: “I see signs of principles, I see that efforts are being made. I do not see sufficient categoricality, I do not see a clear plan yet. We have serious criticism of the 2026 Budget, we also have doubts that this government came with one intention, and the implementation is something else.“
On the risk of the BSP losing its headquarters in “Positano“ 20, he stated: “Shishkov has been a little hasty with the announcement. The ideas we defend do not need a party headquarters in the center. If necessary, we will meet in the meadows. They will not scare us by taking away our headquarters, nor will they shut our mouths.“