NEWS

Statement Made by President Rosen Plevneliev after the Extraordinary Meeting of the Consultative Council for National Security

"I would like to acquaint you with the opinion expressed by and the proposal made by the Consultative Council for National Security regarding the topical political situation in the country.

The political parties represented in parliament, members of the Consultative Council for National Security, discussed the topical political situation in the country and taking into consideration the fact that the elections for European Parliament failed to give the government additional strength and legitimacy to conduct fundamental and comprehensive reforms and also taking into account that, coupled with the aforementioned, the elections for European Parliament failed to offer a clear alternative, they agreed on the necessity of effecting a smooth transition to ensuring political stability and on the need to hold political consultations so as to reach consensus on:

1. The date of conducting an early general election in the 28th September – 12th October period;

2. Defining priority tasks the parliament and the executive branch of power should perform;

3. Speeding up the process of concluding the Partnership Agreement of the Republic of Bulgaria, which outlines the assistance provided by the European structural funds in the 2014-2020 period;

4. Formulating clear principles and rules for nominating the Bulgarian EU commissioner;

5. Providing guarantees that fair and free elections will be conducted.

I would like to thank all members of the Consultative Council for National Security for holding an extremely correct and well-intentioned dialogue, for the debate we had on adopting a constructive and nationally-responsible approach.

I believe that the decision made by the Consultative Council for National Security is an important step towards ensuring stability and offers clear prospects for our country.

I would like one again to thank all of you. I wish you a successful day."