Ruling party blocks hearing of PM on drone attacks on vessels in Bulgaria’s Black Sea EEZ
MPs from ruling party Progressive Bulgaria voted on October 7 to reject a proposed parliamentary hearing of Prime Minister Roumen Radev and top security officials on the drone attacks a day earlier that sunk a ship and severely damaged another in Bulgaria’s Black Sea exclusive econonic zone.
The proposal, tabled by opposition Democratic Bulgaria and supported by all opposition parliamentary groups, was for a hearing of Radev as well as the head of the State Agency for National Security, the head of Military Intelligence, and the ministers of defence, transport and interior.
Democratic Bulgaria’s Ivailo Mirchev told the House that the October 6 attacks were an escalation and that while parliamentary group representatives would be briefed at an October 7 meeting of the Consultative Council on National Security, the public also should know what was happening.
Mirchev asked why a scheduled question time for Defence Minister Dimitar Stoyanov had been postponed until next week instead of until October 8.
On October 6, Progressive Bulgaria was the only party of those represented in Parliament to not issue a statement about the attacks. On Wednesday, there were three declarations in the National Assembly at the start of the sitting – two about the drone attacks, while that by Progressive Bulgaria was about the Day of Honest Labour.
Democratic Bulgaria parliamentary group leader Nadezhda Yordanova noted in a declaration that Radev had refused to say who was behind the attacks: “This is not a detail, but the central issue,” she said.
“The Bulgarian state cannot act as a bystander when commercial ships are attacked in the immediate area of Bulgarian economic and strategic interest,” Yordanova said.
Yordanova said that Democratic Bulgaria would insist on the inclusion of the day’s meeting of the Consultative Council on National Security specific steps including sending a formal note to Russia about its gross violation of maritime law, calling on it to desist from attacks in Bulgaria’s exclusive economic zone, to confirm Bulgaria’s position on an immediate ceasefire and the start of real peace negotiations, to request Nato Article 4 consultations, to urgently convene the UN Security Council, and for Bulgaria to participate in European drone projects and those for maritime and underwater security.
Radev, speaking at the start of the regular weekly Cabinet meeting, said that the Consultative Council on National Security convened by President Iliana Yotova should not become a stage for “pre-election demagoguery.” “There is no room for hysteria. Cool-headedness and sober judgment are needed ,” Radev said.
Radev said that building capabilities to counter unmanned systems in the air and sea is a complex process that cannot be solved in a short time. “It requires time, and also finance,” he said.
He said that in 2023, under the caretaker government that he had appointed (while president), the then defence minister had pledged to acquire high-end unmanned aerial systems capable of monitoring the entire exclusive economic zone of Bulgaria.
According to Radev, after that, “no steps were taken.” Radev said that now the Minister of Defence has prepared the necessary documentation and the procedure has already been launched.
Radev said that in 2022, again at the initiative of the defence minister in the caretaker cabinet, Bulgaria had joined the European air shield initiative.
“Only today, after all the work done by our government, we are adopting a project for investment expenditure for the purchase of five more anti-aircraft missile systems. I expect to have a contract within weeks ,” he said.
Radev returned to his theme of the war and the need for diplomatic efforts.
“Pouring money into war and endless rearmament is much more expensive than efforts for diplomacy and finding a lasting solution for peace. Our government will continue to work in this direction,” he said.
