The leader of DSB and deputy chairman of the PP-DB PG Atanas Atanasov commented to bTV on the risks facing Bulgaria in terms of security, economy, finances and in the context of the upcoming elections.
„We must distinguish between threat and risks. There is no direct threat to Bulgaria as a result of the war in Iran. There are risks, of course, possibly terrorist acts, migration waves and so on, but I think that at this stage there is no data in this direction“, said Atanasov.
He stressed the need for the security services to show “more serious vigilance“, since in his words “at this stage they do not have sufficient capacity to counteract these risks“.
Atanasov also commented on the defense of Bulgaria through allies: “Here is one such moment in which Bulgarian society should appreciate what it means to be members of NATO and the European Union. Because as a result of this war in Iran, we have a protective wall of allies to the south and southeast in the face of Greece, Turkey. The Greeks immediately provided us with additional capabilities, of course. The risk of a missile flying through our allies to Bulgaria does not exist, since the anti-missile systems of both Greece and Turkey are on combat readiness and are very effective.“
Regarding information about American tanker planes flying over the Mediterranean, which are probably refueling fighter jets or reconnaissance aircraft, taking off from “Vasil Levski“ airport, Atanasov said: “This information must be verified, because it is not excluded that there will be provocations. The services here, the Air Force, must provide information and, first of all, of course, the Minister of Defense. Are there increased risks for Bulgaria if these tanker planes serve American aviation in the south?“
Regarding the future elections and the position of political parties, Atanasov pointed out: “Bulgaria, in order to be safe, must strictly fulfill its alliance obligations as a member of NATO and as a member of the EU. These are, on the one hand, the most powerful military alliance, and on the other hand, the most powerful economic alliance. And this guarantees our security. However, this does not mean that we should be inactive. Investments are needed - investments in the Bulgarian economy. Not only to produce shells together with the Germans, but we need investments in new technologies that are used in defense. This is very important.“
Regarding the initiative for a “Peace Council“ Atanasov stated: “This initiative is absolutely unconstitutional. It is not clear what this board is. It turns out that this is a personal initiative of the US President, and the United States itself did not support this initiative. This is some kind of initiative that serves private interests. I was in the plenary hall the whole time on Friday afternoon and watched as my colleagues from GERB looked at their shoes in shame. At the very least, there is a separation of powers. The parliament cannot oblige the executive branch to do something that is exclusively its competence. This is in the first place.“
Regarding the “Petrohan“ case, Atanasov said: “I have not been to “Petrohan“, I do not know where this hut is, I do not know these people. The most important issue is the lack of trust in the judicial institutions. Starting with Tsatsarov, we go through Geshev, and get to Sarafov. Society does not trust the institutions. If Sarafov had not appeared to put some labels, perhaps this story could have been accepted a little more calmly.“
In the discussion about the judicial system, Atanasov commented: “The great plague of the modern Bulgarian state is the judicial system. The lack of reform there, a Supreme Judicial Council with an expired mandate, an inspectorate, which is now starting its third mandate in April and has no right to a second one by law, this proud knot must be cut there so that new bodies can be elected and they can get to the point of electing a prosecutor general and so on. Otherwise, my personal opinion as a lawyer for years has always been that the position of prosecutor general is redundant in Bulgaria.“
Regarding the election campaign and the DSB's insistence on including Yavor Bojankov and Daniel Lorer in their coalition lists, Atanasov explained: “We are a coalition, a three-party one. We are the political force that firmly looks to the West. We are supporters of Western democracy. And for this reason, including in relations between parties, there must be dialogue and conflicting issues, such as this one in this case, must be resolved. Our position is that these two colleagues, Bozhankov and Lorer, are very valuable people, very consistent, authoritative people, who also bring positives to the coalition and votes. And for this reason they should be on the lists.“
Atanasov stressed that the negotiations will continue at the leadership level: “Tomorrow is the decisive moment when we have to decide at the negotiating table whether Bozhankov and Lorer will be candidates for deputies or not. When sausages are being made and lists are being lined up, it is best not to peek inside. Our negotiating teams have identified contradictions in places and these issues must also be resolved at the leadership level. But we are democratic organizations and as intelligent, educated and reasonable people we should find the best solution.“