All posts tagged: Radev

Bulgaria’s parliament confirms Russia-aligned Radev as prime minister – POLITICO

Bulgaria’s parliament confirms Russia-aligned Radev as prime minister – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Radev on Friday morning, writing on X that Europe faced “a strong agenda to work on” together, including “security and defence,” “competitiveness” and “energy independence.” While unveiling his cabinet on Thursday, Radev also laid out his priorities in office. He said the government’s immediate focus would be tackling soaring prices, alongside judicial reform, budget discipline and accelerating the use of EU recovery funds before key deadlines expire. Radev’s victory ends years of political deadlock in Bulgaria — but also hands his new Russia-aligned government the country’s biggest parliamentary mandate in nearly three decades. This article has been updated. Source link

Russia-aligned Rumen Radev set to win Bulgarian election – POLITICO

Russia-aligned Rumen Radev set to win Bulgarian election – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

In his remarks after voting on Sunday morning, Radev said the election was an opportunity to “take back” the country from oligarchs, but also called for relations of “mutual respect” with Moscow, based on Russia’s role in liberating Bulgaria from the Ottoman empire in 1878.   While these positions have helped him build up a base of support at home, he has avoided direct confrontation with the West and has generally fallen in step with the European mainstream when attending European Council meetings in Brussels. European funds are vital to the EU’s poorest member country and Bulgarian leaders have traditionally avoided any provocative antics in Brussels in the style of outgoing Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán. In the days before the election, the former MiG-29 pilot pushed back against the accusations that he was pro-Russian. “I don’t see what kind of pro-Russian position I have. I have completely pro-Bulgarian positions, I have pro-European positions,” he said. He refuses to go to into coalition with Bulgaria’s two most prominent politicians — former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov and …

Fighter pilot Rumen Radev looks to break Bulgaria’s political deadlock – POLITICO

Fighter pilot Rumen Radev looks to break Bulgaria’s political deadlock – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Eclectic supporters Despite years of speculation that he would go for the prime minister’s job, Radev only finally revealed his Progressive Bulgaria project in March. While Radev doesn’t formally lead Progressive Bulgaria, he is unmistakably its face. The movement features a motley assembly of politicians close to him or some who changed their allegiance, and also includes military figures, newcomers and former sports personalities. Only six women lead party lists across the country’s 31 electoral districts. “His face is everywhere, which is probably what matters, because nobody else is recognizable,” said Dimitar Bechev, a senior fellow at Carnegie Europe. Progressive Bulgaria has attracted an eclectic range of backers. Polls show it has drawn some supporters of the pro-Russian far-right Revival party. Ahmed Dogan, the founder of the ethnic Turkish DSP party and now a major rival of Peevski, has also expressed his support. And VMRO, a smaller nationalist grouping, has formally endorsed Radev’s party. Yet the party’s program offers few specifics, and Radev has not positioned Progressive Bulgaria clearly on the political spectrum. His economic …