site.btaUPDATED CC-DB Justice Minister Designate Milen Mateev: Key Word is "Freezing", not "Terminating" Negotiations

The key word is "freezing", i.e. not "terminating" the negotiations, said justice minister designate of Continue the Change (CC) Milen Mateev on Saturday, regarding the recent statement of GERB-UDF PM designate Mariya Gabriel that her party is freezing the negotiations with CC-DB in the aftermath of the leaked recordings. 

"The only thing that I did not understand is under what conditions these negotiations will be renewed and what are the arguments for this freezing", Mateev said, pointing out that GERB's statement was "very general" and had "nothing concrete in terms of arguments". He stressed that the GERB press conference was mainly aimed at the party's supporters.

When asked if the recording of the CC National Council was authentic, Mateev answered in the affirmative. He stressed that the good thing was that the whole recording was provided "and not these four minutes of out of context remarks that Radostin Vasilev offered us at the press conference".

Mateev noted that there is nothing legally reprehensible in what was said at the National Council, rather legal responsibility could be sought for the way the recording was made and distributed.

Asked whether there was any prior coordination with foreign diplomatic missions in the country regarding names of future heads of the special services, he explained that the topic was not discussed on the National Council, but it was rather a line which was intended to answer the question of future changes, and that he considered such a coordination with partner services normal.

On replacing agency directors he said it was an emotional remark. He noted that in 2021, CC received reproaches from a large number of people for not changing any of the leading positions in the administration. All these replacements should be done legally, nobody thought that there would be any illegal dismissals, stressed the CC representative.

Regarding the partnership with GERB and the remark in the recording that this government will exist as long as Boyko Borissov "is afraid of Geshev", Mateev explained that this was part of a conversation analyzing the reasons why Borissov, respectively GERB, would support a cabinet of the second political force. Mateev stressed that it is just a guess, rather than the main reason. He himself has asked whether the discussed government will protect Borissov from Geshev and has received a clear answer that this will not happen.

Mateev confirmed after the CC National Council meeting that he agreed to be nominated as minister of justice, but clarified that after the latest events, it is not certain whether there will be a government.