Government crisis in Bulgaria and its ‘war’ against Russian influence

There have been recent developments in the political scene in Bulgaria. The crisis in the ruling coalition is one of the main topics. Also, the blockade of the plane of the Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov from Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Montenegro, preventing him from the planned visit to Serbia.

For this, The Geopost has contacted the expert on the situation in Bulgaria and Russian influence, Rumena Filipova.

According to her, the political crisis in Bulgaria was caused by the decision of the political party ITN, which withdrew from the ruling coalition without any clear justification.

“The political crisis in Bulgaria was sparked by ITN’s (known as There is Such a People led by showman Slavi Trifonov) decision to withdraw from the coalition government without providing a clear and credible justification as to the urgency of leaving the coalition in a tense international environment defined by Russia’s war in Ukraine, acting in line with the generally uncooperative style of the party. ITN’s demands for funds to carry out infrastructure projects take place in a context of serious suspicions and revelations about the party’s entanglement in non-transparent political-economic networks. Bulgaria’s dispute with North Macedonia seems to only have been used as a pretext on the part of ITN for leaving the coalition government since the Prime Minister has pledged many times that decisions regarding Skopje would be put to a parliamentary vote.”, said Filipova for The Geopost.

Further, Filipova added that the political crisis in Bulgaria is a reflection of the long-term processes, which divide society between the post-communist status quo and the democratic one.

“Overall, the political crisis is a reflection of significant and long-term processes taking place in many sectors of Bulgarian society, based on a struggle between the post-communist status quo and the forces of more progressive democratic change. This struggle is defined by the opposition between two different value systems, cultural codes and attitudes to the norms and principles that should guide social relations, doing politics and exercising power. “, she said.

Regarding the blocking of the Russian Foreign Minister’s flight by Bulgaria, Filipova told The Geopost that this could cause dissatisfaction in the Kremlin political circles as well as in Russia’s local representatives in Bulgaria.

“This is among a number of steps that the Bulgarian authorities have taken – most notably together with the decision to wean the country off of Russian gas supplies, in the direction of limiting Russian influence. Standing up to the Kremlin, however, is likely causing dissatisfaction in the Kremlin political circles as well as Russia’s local proxies in Bulgaria, who would step up efforts obstructing Sofia’s attempts to distance itself politically and economically from Moscow.”, she added.

According to Filipova, calls for neutrality by Bulgaria have their roots in the Kremlin and are fueled by Kremlin-sponsored disinformation.

“All of these developments are taking place against a societal background, whereby sections of the population harbor pro-Russian sentiments, fed by Kremlin-sponsored disinformation, and demand Bulgarian ‘neutrality’ towards the Russian war in Ukraine. Such calls for neutrality are rooted in Bulgaria’s East-West cultural ambivalences, conceal a pro-Russian bias, undermine Bulgaria’s pro-Western orientation and contradict the country’s NATO membership.”, Filipova concluded for The Geopost.