site.btaBulgaria Unable to Meet Prescribed Deadline for Election of New European Prosecutor

Bulgaria is unable to meet the prescribed deadline for election of a European prosecutor, Justice Minister Nikolay Naydenov said Wednesday. "The indicative deadlines for selecting a new European Prosecutor from Bulgaria, as set out in Council of Ministers Decision No. 267 of April 9, 2026, cannot be met," Naydenov said in a written reply to a question from Atanas Slavov, a member of the parliamentary group of Continue the Change, published on the parliament's website Wednesday.

Under the said decision, the Minister of Justice was tasked with organizing the procedure for selecting candidates.

In his response, Naydenov also outlines the reasons why the deadlines cannot be observed.

He recalls that the caretaker government of Andrey Gurov revoked Council of Ministers Decision No. 50 of January 21, 2026, which had approved the nominations of three candidates for the position of European Prosecutor from Bulgaria: Dimitar Belichev, Mihaela Raydovska and Plamen Petkov.

The same decision by the caretaker government launched a new selection procedure and set out the deadlines and criteria under which it was to be conducted.

The candidates nominated under the previous procedure have filed appeals against the decision. Administrative proceedings have been initiated before the Supreme Administrative Court, which will examine all appeals against Decision No. 267 in a single case. A court hearing has been scheduled for June 10.

Until the Supreme Administrative Court issues a final ruling in the case, the selection procedure cannot continue.

Teodora Georgieva was appointed European Prosecutor from Bulgaria in July 2020 and her mandate expires on July 29, 2026. She, however, was suspended after in September 2025, the College of the EPPO initiated disciplinary proceedings against her, and in February 2026, she was found guilty of serious misconduct.

Dimitar Belichev was appointed as her replacement on an interim basis.

European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi told bTV's programme 120 Minutes that it would be very unfavorable for the European Prosecutor’s Office not to have a prosecutor from Bulgaria and for this transitional period to continue. "This person must be independent and professional," she added. She also said that it is up to Bulgaria to decide how to organize the selection procedure but noted that all other EU member states have already completed their appointments.