Bulgaria’s Premier Boyko Borissov summoned an extraordinary press conference yesterday on occasion of the recent publications containing a  compromising audio file and photos with Bulgaria’s Prime Minister. My opponents want to cause destabilization and trigger early Parliamentary elections, Boyko Borissov said at the press conference.

Bulgaria's Premier called the audio file in which a voice similar to Borissov's is heard commenting discussions with European leaders, making offensive remarks about the President of the Bulgarian National Assembly Tsveta Karayancheva and commenting revelations about illegally absorbed European funds compromising material and manipulation. The Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office has already begun checking the authenticity of the released audio.

According to Premier Borissov, however, he is being attacked now, because in July Bulgaria has to make two important steps towards the accession to the Eurozone and the European Banking Union and continue working on two complicated projects- the Balkan Stream gas pipeline and the Bulgaria-Greece interconnector. In Boyko Borissov’s words, the attack against his party GERB begun one year ago after the signature of the contract for the acquisition of the F-16 fighter aircraft.

Today, Bulgaria’s President Rumen Radev commented Premier Borissov’s words, including the accusations that Bulgaria’s head of state was flying a drone to watch Borissov in Boyana residence. “I flew planes and drones, but I cannot make interpretations of everything Premier Borissov says, because unlike him, my imagination has limits”, President Radev said.

I am not the person who decides whether or when early elections will be held, President Radev said further during his working visit to the city of Pernik. “I have never expressed a desire to form a caretaker cabinet”, Rumen Radev went on to say and added that now the most important thing is to restore social trust, on which the future of Bulgaria depends. This is possible only through truth, Bulgaria’s head of state said and added that the prosecutor’s office should play a key role and investigate the released audio file and the photos with Premier Borissov.

“Yesterday’s briefing was perhaps an attempt to seek geopolitical indulgence for possible international scandal”, Bulgaria’s head of state said further and added that the struggle for power is between the political parties and he was not part of it.

Compiled by: Miglena Ivanova and Krasimir Martinov