Drone attacks on ships: Opposition parties slam Yotova over continued failure to convene security council

Reacting to the October 6 drone attacks on two ships in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea, which left one vessel sunk and the other on fire, opposition parties slammed President Iliana Yotova for her continued failure to convene the Consultative Council on National Security.

The Consultative Council on National Security, which is convened by the head of state and includes key government ministers, security, defence and intelligence chiefs and representatives of all parliamentary groups, is meant by law to meet at least every three months.

Yotova, who took over as president in January 2026 and is seeking election as head of state in her own right the autumn elections, has not yet convened a meeting of the council.

In September, after explosions and fires at the Emco arms plant in Bulgaria, Yotova said that she was “considering” convening the council but did not do so.

Ivailo Mirchev, co-leader of opposition Democratic Bulgaria, said on October 6: “Today these merchant ships were hit in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone. Is Mrs. Yotova ready to convene such an Consultative Council on National Security?”

“We, from Democratic Bulgaria, again want one to be convened, urgently, in the fastest possible way, because not only is there already a war 300km from us, there are already sunken ships in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone,” Mirchev said.

“I don’t know what needs to happen – the drones have to be on our territory outside the beaches in order to convene the Consultative Council on National Security,” he said.

“When a Ukrainian decoy drone falls, there is a problem. When Russian drones fall, there is no problem,” Mirchev said.

Assen Vassilev, leader of the opposition We Continue the Change, said: “It would be normal in this situation to protect the Bulgarian territorial waters. Or at least to understand why they were not protected”.

“Unfortunately, we obviously do not have a real President of the Republic of Bulgaria, a Commander-in-Chief, at the moment,” Vassilev said.

“There is no convened Consultative Council on National Security, there is no reaction from the presidency,” he said.

“We know that the Chief of the General Staff has already resigned due to disagreement with the political leadership. And at the moment, despite the doubled budget of the Bulgarian army, we do not have adequate protection for Bulgarian citizens,” Vassilev said.

On Facebook, Democratic Bulgaria MP Elisaveta Belobradova demanded that representatives of the State Agency for National Security, the Military Intelligence Service, the State Intelligence Agency, the Minister of Defence, and Prime Minister Roumen Radev be heard in Parliament.

Belobradova urged Yotova to urgently convene the Consultative Council on National Security.

“Once again, we have requested a CCNS. Yotova must finally convene it. If she decides now that she will not do so, she will confirm her unsuitability for the position she currently holds and for which she is standing,” Belobradova said.

On October 6, Yotova’s campaign said that she was cancelling her campaign events for the day.

Presidential candidate Andrei Gyurov – whose candidacy is backed by Democratic Bulgaria and WCC and who is seen in polls as in second place behind Yotova – said on October 6: “Supreme Commander-in-Chief is not a title for ceremonies. Responsibility is proven in the most difficult moments, and hours after the attack on Bulgarian territory, the president has not said a single word”.

Gyurov, a former caretaker Prime Minister, insisted on the immediate convening of the Consultative Council on National Security.

“Ships have already been sunk off the Bulgarian coast. For nearly seven hours we have had no reaction from the president. Does Bulgaria have a commander-in-chief when its people need a lightning-fast response, or do we only have a face for ceremonies?” he said.

Gyurov described what happened as a situation of real threat and called for an immediate response from the presidential institution.

“We are already in conditions of real threat. Tonight at 4am, two commercial ships were hit by drones in the Bulgarian exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea, east of Byala. This is a warning that the state has no right to ignore and remain silent.

“The aggression has reached our shores, and Yotova has not taken any control over the situation for more than seven hours. On the contrary: she allowed the prime minister to seize power, even hours late. Human lives are at stake and they are already at real risk.”

Gyurov also raised the question of the role of the Consultative Council on National Security in the current situation: 

“Mr. Radev, Ms. Yotova, the National Security Advisory Council has not been convened once in nine months and the threat is already real.

“We still have not convened one, hours after the attack on Bulgarian territory? Do we have a president who takes her own responsibility, or is she waiting for someone else to take it instead? We still have not convened one, hours after the attack on Bulgarian territory. Do we have a president who takes his own responsibility, or is he waiting for someone else to take it instead of him? Will Bulgarian citizens be protected?” Gyurov said.

(Photo: iotovavalchev.bg)