site.btaMedia Review: June 16

HEADLINES

The case of the death of 36-year-old Yavor Georgiev in Varna was a topic of discussion on the morning programmes of the Bulgarian National Television (BNT) and Nova TV. The morning programmes of the three national TV channels also hosted discussion studios on the conflict between Iran and Israel. The topic was also covered in interviews for the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR). The topic leads on the front page of Duma. The headlines on the front pages of print media are on various topics.

POLITICS

A leading headline on the front page of Trud reads that “only GERB leads Bulgaria to the eurozone, the rest are only talking”. "It is paradoxical to ask whether we are ready for the eurozone after the two largest European institutions—the European Central Bank and the European Commission—said so in the convergence report." This was stated by GERB leader Boyko Borissov at a national working meeting of the party in Plovdiv, where he specified that he was "eagerly awaiting" the vote of no confidence against the government for "fulfilling its European commitments."

ECONOMY

24 Chasa writes on its front page that beach umbrellas will be 10 to 20% more expensive this summer compared to last year. Concessionaires explain this with the increase in the minimum wage and the indexation of the state fee based on the accumulation of previous years. If the prices of beach equipment on the Black Sea coast are compared, it can be observed that in the major resorts, a set consisting of an umbrella and two sun loungers may cost BGN 30. For example, in Golden Sands and Sunny Day, the current prices are BGN 12 for an umbrella and BGN 12 for a sun lounger, or a set of two sun loungers and an umbrella costs BGN 36. In Sunny Beach, they charge BGN 10 each, which makes a total of BGN 30.

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Telegraph writes that it costs around BGN 250 per day to visit the outdoor swimming pools in Sofia and the surrounding area for two adults with two children. The amount is calculated by paying the entrance fees and including lunch, drinks, and ice cream. The article reads that the highest prices are in Sofia and the lowest in the town of Yakoruda, Southern Bulgaria.

HOME AFFAIRS

Commenting on the case of the death of 36-year-old Yavor Georgiev in Varna, journalist Silvia Velikova told the morning programme of BNT that the system is quite unreformed, and it is evident that employees provide similar reasons for discussing the Ministry of Interior. According to her, in the case of Yavor's death in Varna, “versions are currently being adjusted”. "I hope that the investigators will do their job. It is unfortunate when this happens on the instructions of the interior minister and the prosecutor general, because we saw that [Prosecutor General] Borislav Sarafov, who otherwise claims he has no authority, now explicitly said he would monitor this pre-trial investigation, and ordered a second autopsy to be performed,” Velikova pointed out.

According to social anthropologist Assoc. Prof. Haralan Alexandrov, the Bulgarian people and institutions are going through a typical crisis right now. He expressed worry that "institutions are starting to act like tribes." Assoc. Prof. Alexandrov was adamant that “in Bulgaria, violence is a legitimate method of dealing with crises and problems”. "Violence is all around us. It ranges from verbal violence, which is strongly encouraged on social media and constantly permeates Parliament, to what I call a policy of accusation from the highest to the lowest government positions—everyone accuses each other of failure. And when someone in Bulgaria becomes concerned, the first thing that comes naturally to them, a natural impulse, is to resort to violence."

"It is highly unlikely that the death of the person in question was caused by the actions of the police officers. I assume that the expert examination will confirm this. It is evident that the police officers acted more forcefully, but this is unlikely to have led to a fatal outcome," former Interior Ministry Academy Deputy Rector Milen Ivanov told the morning programme of Nova TV. "There is one major problem - the Ministry of Interior does not provide officers on the street with the necessary tools to resolve such situations without violence. For example, they do not have pepper spray. They also do not have tasers, which are a very effective tool in such cases. If they had them, they would have resolved the situation quickly," said Ivanov.

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Trud has an interview with historian and political analyst Kristian Shkvarek on the recently held march for the family which took place in parallel with the pride events in Sofia on Saturday, June 14. Shkvarek’s main viewpoint is that there is no more important problem for Bulgaria than the demographic crisis. Shkvarek is among the organizers of the march for the family.  

FOREIGN AFFAIRS

Duma writes on its front page that there are deadly strikes between Israel and Iran and that 50 Bulgarian citizens have requested evacuation from Israel.

Foreign Minister Georg Georgiev was a guest in the morning programme of the BNT, where he said the safe evacuation of Bulgarian citizens from Israel is a priority. It is impossible to send a plane to Israel right now. The safe windows for evacuating people are short, and the only less risky option is to take people overland to less risky regions, Georgiev said. There are several people who want to leave Iran. Eleven people who left Amman are already in Bulgaria.

Prof. Dr. Yanko Yanev, energy expert and long-time employee of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told BNR in an interview that Iran's nuclear program will continue. According to him, almost all nuclear facilities are deep underground and the underground facilities have not been damaged. Israel's military attack is aimed at delaying Iran's nuclear program. Since Iran has about 60% enriched uranium, this level of enrichment can be raised very quickly and eventually used to assemble nuclear weapons. Israel's aggressive actions are aimed at creating a complex impossibility to assemble such weapons, Prof. Yanko Yanev pointed out.

Former defence minister and security expert Velizar Shalamanov told BNR that Iran cannot be changed by external pressure alone. “The goals Israel has set for itself are legit and have a lot of international support. Going against these goals wouldn't be good for Russia and China. Maybe they'll look for a solution that changes the situation in Iran itself,” Shalamanov said. “On the one hand, we have Iran, and on the other, there is consolidated support for Israel. The biggest unknown remains the extent to which Iran will receive support from Russia and China and the extent to which there are internal forces in Iran for an alternative. Otherwise, this war could go on for quite a long time,” he commented, adding that the expectation is that change will come to Iran under external pressure, but also by giving internal forces the opportunity to find a solution. "A country like Iran cannot be changed by external pressure alone,” Shalamanov stressed.