ABV Chairman Rumen Petkov described as “a heavy blow to the authority of the Republic of Bulgaria and our relations with strategic partners“ the actions of the Prosecutor's Office, the National Investigation Service and the Sofia District Court, related to raids and searches of defense industry companies.
“During the period for which Ukraine is requesting legal assistance, Bulgarian companies do not have any direct contracts or supplies to Ukraine. This is an attempt to transfer Ukrainian corruption schemes to EU and NATO countries, which Poland and the Czech Republic categorically refused to allow,“ emphasized Petkov.
He defined the actions as a “gross mistake“, which will be used against Bulgaria for years and warned that some of the affected companies may file claims for over a billion leva against the state.
Petkov reacted particularly sharply to the entry into “VMZ - Sopot“ at a time when negotiations are underway for an investment of over 1 billion euros with a leading German company:
“What message are we sending to investors when we allow armed shares in a state-owned enterprise of such rank?“
Petkov also commented on other suggestions, calling them “absurd“ -that Bulgarian companies have sold to Russia or to drug cartels. According to him, Bulgaria has the strictest rules for licensing and control in the defense sector, and media outlets that circulate false claims must be held accountable to the competent authorities for their sources.
He defined what happened as “national treason“ and called for the institutions and individuals who caused the “humiliating abuse“ of Bulgarian companies, proven to be some of the best and most honorable partners in Europe, to be held accountable.
Petkov also touched on the topic of the 4,400 state properties announced for sale, including border posts:
“The president's veto should lead to a general rethinking of the list and the removal from it of all sites that affect national security. Otherwise, the impression of previously promised properties and opaque intentions is created.“
He stressed that budget problems cannot be solved by selling off strategic assets and warned that such an approach undermines statehood.
The regional chairman of ABV-Varna, Assoc. Prof. Georgi Kyuchukov, commented on the upcoming meeting between the presidents of Russia and the United States as “the result of prolonged diplomatic negotiations at an expert level, far from the media“.
“What is announced publicly often has nothing to do with the actual negotiations. Some kind of compromise is about to be reached, but it is not clear who it will satisfy. Ukraine is worried that the decision may be made without its participation, while Russia and its allies fall into euphoria without real grounds,“ said Kyuchukov.
He stressed that the European Union and Britain are excluded from these negotiations, which is indicative of the weakened role of the EU on the international stage. In his words, “the weak position of the EU is also evident in the economic agreements, which a number of European leaders have described as capitulation“.
Kyuchukov expressed concern that the crisis in Ukraine is moving towards some kind of solution, but the crisis in the EU is deepening – both in domestic relations and in foreign policy:
“This should worry all of us as Europeans.“