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New Prime Minister of Bulgaria: Nikolai Denkov

Photo: Valentina Petrova / AP

These were months of political chaos, but now the winning parties in Bulgaria have come to an agreement: the People's Assembly in Sofia has confirmed a new, regular government. It replaces the transitional cabinet set up by President Rumen Radev before the new elections on 2 April.

60-year-old Nikolai Denkov of the PP party was elected prime minister. He was supported by 132 MPs from the ranks of the election winner GERB-SDS and the second-placed bloc PP-DB. The government itself was confirmed with 131 votes.

The rival camps reached an agreement thanks to a compromise: the office of prime minister is to change after nine months – a novelty in the country. After Denkov, it is the turn of ex-EU Commissioner Maria Gabriel (GERB) as head of government. Until then, the 44-year-old is Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister. She is the only representative of GERB-SDS in this government. There is no coalition agreement, only a "gentlemen's agreement", as both sides often emphasize.

More support for Kyiv?

With the new, clearly pro-Western government, observers expect the EU and NATO member to join Western allies more consistently in their support for Ukraine. The pro-Russian Socialists, the pro-Russian and nationalist Vasrashdane (Rebirth) party and the system-critical ITN are in opposition.

Observers expect the new Defense Minister Todor Tagarev to provide greater support for Kyiv – in Bulgaria, for example, urgently needed ammunition is being produced by Ukraine.

However, this threatens to create a conflict between the new government and head of state Radev: The former fighter jet pilot and air force chief is considered Russia-friendly and criticizes the pro-Ukrainian parties in the country as "warmongers".

Denkov has set goals for judicial reform, Bulgaria's accession to the border-free Schengen area and the eurozone, and the fight against corruption. The finance minister in the run-up to the euro introduction planned for 2025 is PP co-chairman Assen Vasilev, who had already headed this department in the government that was overthrown in 2022.

Term of office initially limited to 18 months

Among Bulgarians, the new government alliance in Sofia is polarizing. After mutual allegations of corruption, both camps had vowed never to enter into a coalition – now they want to work together. Critics call the alliance a "marriage of convenience," "shame," and "government of the U.S. embassy." The votes in parliament were accompanied by protests.

With their alliance, GERB-SDS and PP-DB wanted to limit the influence of head of state Radev on Bulgaria's politics. They themselves limited the term of office of the new government to an initial period of 18 months.

But there are doubts as to whether even this comparatively short reign can be managed. "This government will not last long," said the pro-Russian Vasrashdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov. Observers predict an even better election result for the now third-strongest party in the event of a sixth parliamentary election in quick succession.

col/dpa