site.btaUPDATED PM, Interior Minister Attend Closing Ceremony of First European Firesport Championship

Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov and Interior Minister Daniel Mitov attended Friday the closing ceremony of the first ever European Firesport Championship, which was held in Dolna Banya, Southwest Bulgaria. "A competition like this championship is not just a contest of physical skills, but preparation," Zhelyazkov said. 

The Prime Minister quoted grim statistics - 2025 has the highest number of fires in Europe in the last 22 years. From July 1, there have been 150-200 fires per day - a total of about 10,000.
 
"It was a pleasure for us to see such well-prepared athletes," he said. 

The Bulgarian women's team won second place in the firefighting deployment from a motor pump discipline and set a new national record for time. The men's team ranked third in the 4x100 m firefighting relay discipline.

Interior Minister Daniel Mitov also attended the ceremony.

Talking to journalists, he expressed hope that a decree appointing a chairperson for the State Agency for National Security (SANS) will soon be issued. Mitov stressed that the Agency is not entirely within his powers and emphasized that the name of the new head of the structure will be announced after the coordination procedures with the President have been completed. Currently, Denyo Denev serves as acting SANS Chair. 

Commenting on the appointment of Chief Commissioner Miroslav Rashkov as Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, Mitov said that Rashkov has shown he can handle the position during his time as acting secretary general in the past year.

Minister Mitov also commented on the creation of an operational group to combat money laundering. He recalled that this is a model used in the US, the UK, and other countries.

"This is a model we have been looking at for a long time. Since the beginning of our term in office. We also spoke with representatives of the FBI during my visit to the US and discussed how exactly this could be implemented in Bulgaria. Such specialized task forces operate on the basis of cooperation between various institutions that are relevant to the issue," Mitov explained. He pointed out that if the model works successfully, such a group could also be created to combat hybrid threats.

Mitov said that the pre-trial proceedings will determine whether Nikola "Paskal" Nikolov has enjoyed political protection. Nikolov faces charges of participating in an organized crime group, smuggling and possession of excise goods.

“At the moment, I cannot make accusations against anyone in such a case. We must be very careful, given that these are cases that will take some time to resolve. The whole truth must come out, but it is very possible,” the Minister added. 

“What happens during the proceedings is important. It is not up to us, it is not up to the Ministry of Interior. From now on, everything is in the hands of the prosecution service and the court. It is difficult for me to comment on details that I have no way of knowing,” he explained.