BULGARIA’S MINISTER OF INTERIOR RESIGNS (updated)

Bulgaria’s Minister of Interior, Vesselin Vouchkov, submitted resignation and it was accepted. This happened at the regular weekly meeting of the government on Wednesday, 4th of March.

Vesselin Vouchkov’s resignation was unexpected, but Prime Minister Borissov accepted it, Deputy Prime Minister, Roumyana Bachvarova, commented after the Council of Ministers’ weekly meeting.

She declined to name a potential successor to Vouchkov as an Interior Minister, but reminded that this would happen in accordance with the quota principle of allocation of cabinet seats among the ruling parties. Bachvarova added that Vouchkov’s motive to resign was a report that he had submitted to PM Borissov, proposing the replacement of the Head of State Agency for National Security (SANS) and the Interior Ministry’s Chief Secretary.

Following a detailed analysis of the report, the legal office of the Council of Ministers came with a position that it was not a good move to make similar changes at the moment.

PM Borissov talked with Vouchkov and underlined that replacements in such key posts were not appropriate just at a moment when the Head of FBI is visiting Bulgaria.

In 4th of March Council of Ministers meeting, Vouchkov was expected to propose the new chief secretary of the MoI.