Embassy of Bulgaria, Washington D.C.

At an official ceremony, the chairman of the Central Electoral Commission Maria Pavlova announced that Georgi Parvanov is elected Bulgarian President and Anguel Marin is elected Bulgarian Vice President at the presidential elections on November 11 and November 18. Parvanov and Marin won the elections with 53,13% of the votes. Pavlova gave to Blagovest Sendov a copy of the Commission’s decision. She also gave documents with the results from the elections and the Central Electoral Commission’s decision to the newly elected President and Vice President. The Chairman of the Electoral Commission said that the election process was democratic and in accordance with the Bulgarian Constitution. She wished to the new President fruitful cooperation with all institutions. President- elect Parvanov told journalists that in several days he will leave Parliament. He added that he will no longer be member of the Bulgarian Socialist Party.

Bulgaria has the ambition to open all 29 chapters of the acquis communautaire by the end of the year, Deputy Foreign Minister and chief negotiator with the EU Meglena Kouneva told journalists Monday. So far, Bulgaria has opened 23 chapters. Another three, Regional Policy and Coordination of Structural Instruments, Energy, and Financial and Budgetary Provisions, are to be opened by the end of the year according to a preliminary plan.

Bulgaria has requested from the EU to open talks on the remaining three chapters: Agriculture, Economic and Monetary Union and Industrial Policy, by the end of 2001, said Kouneva. This country has already presented its position on these but the European Commission may not be ready for talks, she added. If in its annual report the European Commission says that Bulgaria has made progress towards a functioning market economy, this will be a very favourable assessment which will open a number of doors, said Kouneva.

During last week's round of talks between Bulgaria and the EU this country closed the 12th chapter - Telecommunications and Information Technologies, and opened another two, Environment and Taxation.

The Bulgarian Government and the International Monetary Fund reached an agreement on the budget for 2002. They agreed on a 0.8% budget deficit and zero tax for bank transfers to offshore zones. Finance Minister Milen Velchev announced the agreement on October 26. There will be a Value Added Tax for tourist services but the effective rate will be 10% and not 20% since 50% will be recognized as tax credit.

The macroeconomic framework is not to be changed a lot. The biggest change is that the growth of the GDP will be 0.5% less than the envisaged one and is set to 4%. Finance Minister Velchev said that he expects most revenues from export. According to Velchev, the Fund gave up more of its positions than the Bulgarian Government did - with exception of the zero profit tax rate for reinvested profit. The corporate income tax becomes 15% for all companies.

Jerald Schiff, Head of the IMF mission to Bulgaria commented that the negative consequences for the country after the US event on September 11 will be more than the positive ones. According to Schiff, the budget can be realized, though it won’t be an easy task. He added, that main priority will be the energy and transport policies. The IMF mission will visit Bulgaria in November to discuss the structural reforms to be undertaken by the Cabinet. Most probably, the entire governmental program will be discussed.

`Stable macroeconomic framework and higher living standards are the topmost aims of the Government of the Simeon II National Movement,` Prime Minister Saxe-Coburg-Gotha said as he presented the governmental program in Parliament on October 26. `The principal goal in the economic field is establishing a working market economy following the European standards,` the Prime Minister said. `The tenure programme includes drawing foreign investment between 1,000 and 1,200 million dollars a year on the average, zero budget deficit by 2005, and measures to promote export, reduce the trade deficit and the deficit in the current account, and complete the privatization process in the conditions of full transparency,` said the Prime Minister. By 2005, the Government plans to have completed the main infrastructure projects. The priorities in this field are the energy industry, communications and hi-tech, agriculture, tourism and transport. The Bulgarian Government hopes to get an invitation for NATO membership in 2002 and completing successfully the negotiations with the EU by 2005. "We will try to close all negotiations chapters by 2003," the Prime Minister said. MPs from the parliamentary groups of the United Democratic Forces and the leftist `Coalition for Bulgaria` insisted that the tenure program must be put to "a serious debate" in Parliament next week, but their calls were ignored. Mihail Mikov from Coalition for Bulgaria submitted a formal motion for a debate. The Simeon II National Movement deputy floor leader Vladimir Donchev said in response that all government ministers are in the plenary chamber and are ready for debate now. Muravei Radev, former Finance Minister and MP from the United Democratic Forces proposed an extraordinary session later on Friday or on Monday next week. In the plenary chamber were the Prime Minister, his deputies Nikolay Vassilev and Lidia Shouleva, and the Ministers of the Interior Georgi Petkanov, of Finance Milen Velchev, of Foreign Affairs Solomon Passy and of Transport Plamen Petrov.

Bulgarian, Macedonian Interior Ministers Discuss Cooperation in Fighting Organized Crime

Expanding the cooperation in the fight against organized crime was high on the agenda of the talks in Macedonia of the interior ministers of Bulgaria and Macedonia, Georgi Petkanov and Ljube Boskovski. They focused on ways to expand the cooperation in combatting organized crime, trafficking of people, trade in drugs and psychotropic substances and illegal trade in goods subject to excise duty.

Petkanov and Boskovski also discussed the establishment of direct contacts between the individual national services, the intensification of cooperation at the level of experts and training of personnel. The two ministers paid special attention on the need to strengthen interaction and exchange of information in fighting international terrorism. The two also discussed ways to improve the efficiency of joint actions in border control so as to meet the relevant European models and EU requirements. Bulgaria, along with Sweden, has committed itself to cooperate with Macedonia in the building of a stable system for border control and efficient management of migration flows and shelter within the Migration and Shelter Initiative of the Stability Pact.

Possible 60% Turnout May Secure Outright First-Round Victory for President Stoyanov, Pollsters Say

Nearly 39 per cent of voters intending to go to the polls on November 11 will vote independent candidates Peter Stoyanov (for president) and Nelly Koutskova (for vice president); 17 per cent will vote Georgi Purvanov-Angel Marin, the candidates named by the Socialist-dominated Coalition for Bulgaria; and 6 per cent Bogomil Bonev-Atanas Zhelezchev, named by the Civil Party for Bulgaria.

These projections are based on the results of an express nationwide representative survey conducted by the Alpha Research polling agency on October 5-7. The survey covers only three of the registered pairs of candidates, as the other three pairs were registered after the starting date of the poll.

- "As member of the UN Security Council, Bulgaria will contribute to a safer world," Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha said in a statement occasioned by Bulgaria's election as non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. As he put it, "this is an honour and recognition of Bulgaria's authority. Over the next two years, Bulgaria will be one of the ten important states in the world along with the five permanent members of the Security Council, authorized to make decisions on matters of global security," the PM said. He thanked everybody who have contributed to this success, including Bulgaria's friends around the world.

The Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) has named Georgi Purvanov as its candidate for the November 11 presidential elections.The BSP supreme leadership voted 96 to 2 on Sunday to mandate Purvanov to conduct political consultations with the parties in the Coalition for Bulgaria (CfB) as well as other political formations.

92,504 signatures were collected in support of President Peter Stoyanov's re-election bid and of the vice presidential candidacy of Neli Kutskova, their electoral headquarters said. The law required them to collect 15,000 signatures before they can be registered as independent candidates.

Late Monday evening, Bulgaria was approached to grant the use of an air corridor for the passage of transport planes and helicopters involved in the anti-terrorist operation of the US Army, President and Commander-in-Chief Peter Stoyanov and Foreign Minister Solomon Pasi said.

The members of the Consultative Council on National Security (CCNS) and Stoyanov will recommend to the Foreign Ministry to reply in the affirmative to the request.

"The parliament does not have to be consulted under these circumstances since no combat craft are involved," Pasi said, describing the decision of the council as a natural progression of the country's foreign policy. "The US operation is planned under utmost secrecy," Pasi said, declining to give more details.

"Terrorism is undoubtedly among the latest global threats and despite the absence, for the moment, of direct threats for the Bulgarian territory or people, we should have a clear vision on risk assessment issues," Stoyanov said. Bulgaria will have to rethink its national security principles as will all other countries, he said. "They should not be used for partisan purposes but should be shared by all future governments,"

Stoyanov said. The national security concept and the military doctrine need to be updated and the CCNS will propose to parliament to form a working group for this purpose, Stoyanov said.

The People's Court of Libya postponed for December 22 the hearing which it was due to hold on Saturday, September 22 and in which judgement was to be rendered against 16 defendants in a trial in connection with the spread of a HIV virus in the Benghazi Children's hospital. There are five Bulgarian nationals among them - five nurses and a doctor, who have been held in custody for over two years and a half now. According to the Spokesperson for the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry this decision indicates that there are not categorical proofs of their guilt yet. "We are satisfied with this decision of the Court. The postponement gives hope that the three months will be used for considering once again the facts, which are perceived as proofs." Mrs. Elena Poptodorova said. She voiced hope that meanwhile the Bulgarian health professionals will be found not guilty of the grave charges.

For his part the Chairman of the National Assembly Ognyan Gerdzhikov has assessed over the Bulgarian National Radio the fact that the international community has been engaged by sending representatives to attend the trial as an additional guarantee, which gives greater chances to the Bulgarians.

The National Assembly in Sofia reiterated in a declaration Bulgaria's readiness to cooperate with NATO in the passage and servicing of, and provide logistical support to, the respective formations thus lending additional help within the frameworks of the agreement between Bulgaria and NATO. Parliament seconded the government's stand to cooperate as an actual ally of the US and NATO member-states to the measures for combating world terrorism in compliance with Bulgaria's national interest to become a full member of the Alliance. The declaration voices support for the efforts of NATO and the international community to create a global coalition for combating terrorism. The document further voices Bulgaria's readiness to participate efficiently in this process.

Milen Velchev said in Sofia on 21 September that Bulgaria will sign an agreement with the IMF by the end of 2001, BTA reported. Velchev made his comments after a second meeting with Jerald Schiff, the IMF mission leader in Bulgaria. Schiff said the IMF does not agree with the Bulgarian government's plan to increase the minimum monthly wage because it will increase government spending amid high unemployment. Velchev said the proposed wage increase was needed to improve the living standard of many Bulgarians and said the proposal will not derail negotiations with the IMF.

Bulgaria's presidential election in which the incumbent Petar Stoyanov is the only candidate, will be held on November 11.

Both the president and the vice president must be elected by a majority ballot. If the first round does not produce a winner with a 50 percent majority, a second round vote will be held two weeks later.

Stoyanov announced in June that he would be seeking a second five-year term. He ran for the conservative United Democratic Forces (FDU) when he was first elected in November 1996, but this time he is running as an independent with FDU opposition support.

U.S. Soldiers in Bulgaria Exercises

AP, September 20, 2001

KRUMOVO, Bulgaria - There are about 300 U.S. troops participating in an international air force exercise at a Bulgarian air base in Krumovo, about 100 miles southeast of the capital, Sofia.

The 10-day exercise was conducted under NATO's Partnership for Peace program and was under the command of U.S. Lt. Gen. Ronald Keys. It included some 1,500 troops from the United States and NATO allies Canada, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Turkey and 13 nations in the Partnership for Peace program.

It was the largest exercise Bulgaria has staged so far as a part of its effort to join NATO. The alliance is expected to examine Bulgaria's candidacy during its summit next year.

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