The new Bulgarian government is displaying more moderate rhetoric, but in practice economic and diplomatic relations between Sofia and Moscow remain completely frozen, the Russian news agency TASS reports. According to the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Bulgaria Eleonora Mitrofanova, the new government in Bulgaria is avoiding the topic of bilateral dialogue in domestic politics, while maintaining its previous firm position in international forums.
On the eve of Russia Day, the Russian diplomatic representative commented on the first weeks of the work of the new cabinet, whose management she links to the political line of President Rumen Radev. According to Eleonora Mitrofanova, despite more measured statements in the country, on the international stage, official Bulgarian representatives continue to use the same rhetoric.
“The term “Russian aggression“ continues to dominate the Bulgarian language outside Bulgaria“, the Russian ambassador pointed out. She added that officials in Sofia are trying to avoid this topic in the domestic debate, which, according to her, is due to the vote of citizens sympathetic to Russia and expecting positive changes. On the business front, however, there is a lack of any significant development.
Economic relations between the two countries at the state level are practically non-functional, it is clear from the diplomat's statement. Private business continues to operate solely on the personal initiative of entrepreneurs who manage to navigate the complex international situation. According to Eleonora Mitrofanova, talks in the energy sphere are not taking place and it is unclear in which areas negotiations could begin. She expressed skepticism about possible gas supplies, since the European Union will not grant the necessary permission for this.
The ambassador also touched on the topic of the oil refinery in Burgas, noting that Russian oil is necessary for the normal functioning of the plant. According to her, the changes in the law on the powers of the special commercial manager of “Lukoil“ were made due to the threat of serious legal claims against the state. The Russian diplomat believes that the initial version of the regulatory act was adopted hastily and represented a form of expropriation of the asset, and in order to preserve production, Bulgaria should request a new derogation from the European Union.
The first working meetings between the Russian Embassy and representatives of the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs have already passed in a constructive tone, Eleonora Mitrofanova also reported. During the talks, current technical aspects of the mission's work were discussed.
The Bulgarian side raised the issue of an alleged ban on studying Bulgarian in schools in the cities of Mariupol, Berdyansk and in the Zaporozhye region. The Ambassador denied that there were any administrative restrictions imposed.
“We do not have any bans on studying languages, but there is a certain system for organizing the process - it depends on the number of children who wish to study the respective language“, explained Eleonora Mitrofanova.
In conclusion, she emphasized that she does not expect radical changes on a bilateral level, since the Bulgarian authorities will act entirely within the framework of the restrictions imposed by the country's membership in the European Union and NATO.