"We have not negotiated ministries, we have talked about portfolios and policies", BSP MP Kiril Dobrev commented to journalists in response to a question about the negotiations to form a cabinet.
Dobrev commented on the topic before the start of the BSP National Council, which is being held today at the party headquarters.
As part of the negotiating team, I will report on how the negotiations went, we have acted entirely within the powers given to us by the National Council, and from now on whether there will be a government or not, whether there will be a coalition or not, depends on the decisions that the national body will make, Dobrev pointed out.
When asked if there are agreed ministries, he replied "I have no idea. We have not negotiated ministries, we have talked about portfolios and policies". When asked if his name was appearing as a potential Minister of Interior and if this was true, Dobrev replied: "Do I look like one to you".
In response to a question about whether there would be a government with the participation of the BSP, Kiril Dobrev emphasized that the National Council is about to make a decision. The time for unilateral decisions in the BSP is over, he added.
The BSP, with its 133 years, has proven that it can make compromises in difficult times and has been a party of consensus for the last 35 years. Kaloyan Pargov told journalists this. He pointed out that the BSP needs a very strong narrative to motivate why it is entering such a government at this moment. According to him, what is important now is what will weigh more heavily - the state interest, the country, which is in chaos, a state of wars in the world, or the state of the party and the possibility of realizing part of its program goals in such a government.
Pargov believes that the first big problem for the government will be the 2025 budget, against the background of the lack of revenues and the desire for a lot of spending. The work and the question before this plenum is to formulate the national goal that will justify the risks of entering this government, he also pointed out. When asked about the conditions set at the last plenum, Pargov indicated that these conditions remain and have been accepted by the future coalition partners. "On the issue of Belene, I expect the process of stopping the sale of equipment to Ukraine to be activated. The topic of Ukraine and Bulgaria's neutrality is also a key issue, the winds have already started to change," Pargov added.
The National Council will decide whether we should participate in the cabinet and how to participate, commented Georgi Gyokov to journalists before the start of today's BSP plenum. He specified that after the National Council meeting, there will also be a meeting of the coalition council. We will see what the opinions are and we will also take into account what the coalition partners think, Gyokov added.
BSP MP Atanas Atanasov noted that the thought that regular governance is now extremely necessary is not foreign to anyone. At the same time, however, you can see that the configurations are not easy. Asked whether it is true that one deputy prime minister's position for the BSP and three or four ministries have already been agreed upon, he replied that today the negotiating group is due to report on how these negotiations went. When asked if there is tension in the coalition on the topic of participation in a future cabinet with GERB, Atanasov said that there is no such tension at this stage.
A few days ago, the Executive Committee of GERB assigned the Negotiation Team to continue negotiations with the BSP - United Left and ITN to form a regular government.