site.btaWall Street Journal Article Not Bulgarian but American Intrigue, Says Deputy PM Donchev

Asked whether the publication in The Wall Street Journal, which reported that during his visit to Bulgaria in late April, Donald Trump Jr. met with GERB leader and former prime minister Boyko Borissov, poses a reputational problem for Bulgaria, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Innovation and Growth and GERB Deputy Chair Tomislav Donchev commented that “this is not a Bulgarian but an American intrigue”. Donchev spoke to journalists in Gabrovo, where he attended an information meeting on the introduction of the euro in Bulgaria on Tuesday.

“Whenever a person’s name and face appear in the media today, they are under extreme risk, it all depends on how the information will be interpreted and how it will come across to the public,” Donchev added.

The Wall Street Journal reported that during his visit to Bulgaria in late April, Donald Trump Jr. met with GERB leader and former prime minister Boyko Borissov and the Bulgarian politician spoke about the potential sale of a stake in TurkStream to the US in exchange for relief from US Magnitsky Act sanctions for some of Borissov's close allies, among other favours. A prominent Bulgarian politician that was sanctioned under the legislation is MRF - New Beginning leader Delyan Peevski. He was named as an oligarch who "has regularly engaged in corruption, using influence peddling and bribes to protect himself from public scrutiny and exert control over key institutions and sectors in Bulgarian society". Peevski is challenging the designation in a US court. His lawyers argue that there is no evidence of any wrongdoing by their client.

On Monday, Borissov said he “always promotes Balkan Stream“ and “did not mention Peevski" during his talks with Trump Jr.

Asked whether the article in The Wall Street Journal and the accompanying comments that “a leader of a political party is negotiating a gas pipeline with a son of an American president” pose a problem, Donchev replied: “He may negotiate, he may discuss the topic. In fact, any politician who, in their official capacity, discusses a new facility – a nuclear power plant, a gas pipeline, a new factory – with a company could be exposed to the same kind of risk.”

“Any conversation could be reconstructed and interpreted in all sorts of directions,” Donchev added.

He also addressed the issue of a potential new no-confidence vote against the government following The Wall Street Journal publication. “Every vote of no confidence is a reason to reflect on whether something might not be right. But it seems to me that this most powerful instrument of the opposition has been somewhat devalued, as it is being used more often than customary,” Donchev said. “Votes of no confidence now come almost every week, and I think that keeps us alert. If too much time passes without one, I’d start worrying that something isn’t right,” he added.

“I remembered all the comments from four or five years ago claiming that the Balkan Stream pipeline was a loss-making project, that it would soon be left empty and pointless. And yet suddenly it turns out to be a valuable asset for everyone, everyone is now talking about this pipeline,” Donchev further explained.