site.btaParliament Obliges PM to Participate in Hearing on US Military Aircraft at Sofia Airport

On Thursday, Parliament obliged caretaker Prime Minister Andrey Gurov to participate in a hearing on the US military aircraft at Sofia Airport and on tensions in the Middle East.

The proposal was made by There Is Such a People (TISP) Floor Leader Toshko Yordanov, who suggested that Gurov's participation is required, as the matter is important.

Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria MP Yavor Bozhankov opposed Yordanov's proposal. Bozhankov criticized TISP for targeting the caretaker cabinet, as the cabinet is "a thorn in [their] side".

To answer the MPs' questions, the session was attended by the caretaker Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nadezhda Neynsky; of Defence, Atanas Zapryanov; and by CEO of Sofia Airport, Ivan Dimitriev.

A 15-minute break was called at the request of TISP, while the National Assembly administration was trying to contact Gurov. When the session resumed, National Assembly Deputy Chair Tsoncho Ganev reported that the Council of Ministers was not answering the phone. Ganev asked the parliament administration to contact the Ministry of Interior and send a team to the Council of Ministers to check whether everything was okay with the Cabinet staff.

MRF - New Beginning Deputy Floor Leader Iskra Mihaylova-Koparova said that they had no choice but to turn to President Iliana Iotova who would have to instruct the Prime Minister she had appointed to appear before the National Assembly.

On February 19, the Defence Ministry announced that aircraft of the United States Air Force had been deployed at Sofia Airport in connection with a military exercise.