site.btaParliament Ratifies Bulgaria-EIB Contribution Agreement on EU for Ukraine Fund

The National Assembly ratified, 108-57 with no abstentions, a Contribution Agreement between the Republic of Bulgaria and the European Investment Bank (EIB) concerning the EU for Ukraine Fund. The ratification was preceded by a debate on Friday.

Bulgaria's participation in the EU for Ukraine Fund with a contribution in the form of a guarantee amounting to EUR 10 million was approved by the Council of Ministers on October 11, 2023, the report of the Parliamentary Budget and Finance Committee says. The issuance of the state guarantee in connection with Bulgaria's participation in the Fund through the conclusion of the two agreements with the EIB is provided for in the 2025 State Budget Act.

The Fund is part of the EIB's EU for Ukraine initiative and aims to enable European Union Member States, the European Commission, as well as other countries and donors, to support Ukraine’s recovery through their contributions.

The contribution is voluntary and may take the form of a cash contribution, a guarantee, or a combination of the two.

To date, contribution agreements have been signed by 16 EU Member States: Belgium, Italy, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Finland, Croatia, Spain, Poland, Slovakia and Ireland, with four of them also having signed Guarantee Agreements. The total amount of participation by all contributors stands at EUR 410.3 million.

Ratification of the Contribution Agreement and the Notice of Accession to the Guarantee Agreement will secure Bulgaria’s participation in the EU for Ukraine Fund. This will allow the country, through joint and several guarantees together with the other EU Member States, to indirectly support Ukraine’s recovery and contribute to the rollout of public- and private-sector projects for the reconstruction of critical municipal infrastructure and to improving access to finance for entrepreneurs, the budget committee report also notes.

During the parliamentary debate, MP Petar Petrov of Vazrazhdane said that he will vote against the ratification, because money should instead be given to the treatment of sick children, road repairs, and municipalities experiencing water shortages. The ratification is to the detriment of Bulgarian citizens, he added.  

MP Manol Peykov of Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) said that the resources for roads and medicine have nothing to do with those Bulgaria gives to Ukraine. "This money is invested well, because Ukraine is our shield and if it falls, that will be to everyone's detriment," he added.

Petrov replied that an investment is something that will be returned to you, while this money will not be returned to Bulgaria.

MP Aleksandar Koychev of Vazrazhdane said that the Contribution Agreement was signed by a caretaker finance minister back in 2023, and it is strange that its ratification is put to the vote now. "What do we owe Ukraine?" he asked. 

MP Yavor Bozhankov of CC-DB said that Bulgaria should care for Bessarabian Bulgarians. "They study in bomb shelters, their relatives are on the front line, Russia put them there," he added.