Caretaker PM Glavchev: The road to the euro area remains open without any obstacles

Positive results for Bulgarian citizens can only be achieved through the collaboration of all institutions and authorities, stated caretaker Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev at the start of the caretaker government's meeting on December 23.

"I don't want to speak about the work of other institutions, but when we are connected, there is no other way for things to work," Glavchev said. He recalled that the government had submitted the draft state budget, as well as the budgets for the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF) and the National Social Security Institute (NSSI). Initial promises were that the budget would be adopted by the end of the year, the caretaker Prime Minister noted. "Well, it won't be adopted because politicians don't like it in its current form, but at least they could have rejected it," he added.

He said if the MPs had rejected it, the cabinet would have had the opportunity to table a bill to extend the previous budget.

"I urge the National Assembly to work, but they followed their rules and went on vacation," Glavchev stated.

The caretaker Prime Minister also mentioned that he had just returned from the Chaira pump-storage hydro power plant, where Unit 2 was connected to the national energy system. Chaira is the largest underground power station in the Balkans, ranked number one in Europe and third in the world. According to Glavchev, the facility allows the system to be balanced, with one unit providing between 130 and 210 megawatts of power, meaning that if all four units were operational, they could generate as much as one unit of the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant. He added that this energy can be stored and used when needed.

Glavchev pointed out that the caretaker government has not stopped any of the projects, which is something to be proud of. "We haven't stopped any of the projects that were ongoing before us. On the contrary, as you can see, we are completing them."

Regarding Bulgaria's path to joining the Eurozone, Glavchev said that by mid-January, the country is expected to meet the fourth criterion. He also noted that during the European Council meeting, he had the opportunity to request an expedited assessment of the convergence report. "The path to the Eurozone during our mandate remains unobstructed," Galvchev stressed.

Glavchev also expressed disappointment that the Parliament chose not to address the agreement with Ukraine. "I have repeatedly said that there are no concerns regarding the agreement, except for the ten-year term," he said. Glavchev explained that signing it in its current form would have violated a 1992 Constitutional Court interpretive decision, which specifies that caretaker governments have full powers like regular governments but only within the time limits of their mandate. "I sincerely hope no one believes this caretaker government will last 10 years in order to sign such an agreement," he concluded, leaving the matter for the next government to handle.