During the holidays, Prime Minister Kiril Petkov launched a campaign on Facebook to raise money for the Ukrainian government so it can buy ammunition. "I call on every Bulgarian citizen who really wants to help Ukraine to donate his salary like me," Petkov wrote in his post. This provoked many reactions on social media and, again, raised Bulgaria's position on military aid to Ukraine.
Bulgaria helps Ukraineindirectly
The issue is one that shakes the coalition as BSP's leader Kornelia Ninova doesn't want to lose support from Bulgarian Russophiles. But official data shows that the country exported weapons that most probably went to Ukraine.
Ninova's answer to a parliamentary question shows that the export commission has allowed deals amounting to more than 316 million euros for the EU in the first six weeks of the war - from February 20 to April 13. For the same period last year, the figure was 117 million euros.
Since Western Europe hardly needs old Soviet products, such as those produced mainly by Bulgarian factories, it can be said with near certainty that the increased exports are aimed at Ukraine.
Ninova's answer also indicates the countries to which the special production goes: Denmark, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, Slovenia, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, and Estonia. According to unofficial information, Ukrainian aid passes mostly through Poland. Government sources told Capital Weekly that almost 100% of these exports are currently being re-exported to Ukraine.
Yet, officially at least, the coalition government doesn't have a unified position on military assistance. And today Deputy Prime Minister of Ukraine Olga Stefanishina called on the Bulgarian government to send weapons to Ukraine.
BSP refuses to send its representative to Ukraine with the Bulgarian delegation
The Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) will not send a representative to accompany the Bulgarian delegation to Ukraine next week, the party's national council decided today. BSP's argument is that there is enough information about the situation in Ukraine.
So far, Stanislav Balabanov from "There is such a people" and Kaloyan Ikonomov from "We continue the change" have confirmed their participation in the delegation which will be led by Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. "Democratic Bulgaria", will also have a representative, as yet unnamed.
Bulgaria is among the EU countries with the best debt-to-gross domestic product ratio
Bulgaria is among the EU countries with the lowest debt as a percentage of gross domestic product - 25.1% (or 33.2 billion levs). Only Estonia (18.1%) and Luxembourg (24.4%) have a lower ratio, according to data from Eurostat for 2021, quoted by the National Statistical Institute. At the end of the year, the EU's debt amounted to 12.7 trillion. euro, which is 88.1% of total GDP.
During the holidays, Prime Minister Kiril Petkov launched a campaign on Facebook to raise money for the Ukrainian government so it can buy ammunition. "I call on every Bulgarian citizen who really wants to help Ukraine to donate his salary like me," Petkov wrote in his post. This provoked many reactions on social media and, again, raised Bulgaria's position on military aid to Ukraine.
