GERB-UDF leader Borissov: An apology can bring us back to the negotiating table

"I expect an apology for the epithets and insults. In 9 months I have not allowed myself anything like that. It will continue. I expect an apology because I have not violated the Constitution. The decree (of the President) was issued for appointment of a prime minister. With regard to the Ministers, I remind you that all the Ministers who are still Ministers, even though they are outgoing, made a commitment 9 months ago for a period of 18 months. It is their right to recuse themselves, but at this point in time that could be interpreted differently. I continue to believe that Bulgaria needs a government, the country needs stability, we need a government of shared responsibility. In it, the two partners - GERB-UDF and WE Continue the change-Democratic Bulgaria - should be on an equal footing. You work in a team that you trust and I believe that now is the moment when we all have to continue to show our responsibility to Bulgaria," Mariya Gabriel said at a briefing in Parliament on March 20.

WCC-DB call on President Radev to withdraw his decree

"A month ago, Mr Petkov and I have talked about the cabinet reshuffle," Borissov noted.

In his words, GERB-UDF are willing to continue the negotiations.

"The first thing that could bring us back to the negotiating table is a big 'We are sorry'. I call on WCC-DB to apologise to GERB, and personally to Mariya Gabriel," Borissov stressed.

"We said that we are ready to rotate only the prime minister and deputy prime minister, with Nikolai Denkov getting the post of deputy prime minister for European affairs. Then the colleagues from WCC-DB said "We are not interested in ministerial posts". The only dispute was about Minister Tagarev (Defence Minister). We have known from all these negotiations that they themselves very much want to be ministers, last night we understand that they do not. This negotiating team was made to make things happen, rather than expressing disagreement. Nikolai Denkov resigned without asking us. We are not putting the item to a vote today, it could wait until Friday, that's 7 days. What a level playing field and shared responsibility that is, with 11 ministers out of 19 standing behind them," Borissov said.

Delyan Peevski, co-chair of MRF said: We had no claims to the agreement, my friend Kiril (referring to WCC co-leader Kiril Petkov) confirmed it

He said that he was not a lawyer of the MRF and did not want to comment on the friendship of WCC-DB with MRF.

"I can only assure you that it is much bigger than our friendship , GERB-UDF leader Boyko borissov said.

"I have always said that I support Hristo Ivanov's constitutional reform," Borissov said.

He clarified that if these ministers do not want, they will not be ministers in the next cabinet.

Images by Dessislava Kulelieva, BNT

"I don't want a leadership meeting because they are behaving badly. Mariya Gabriel said it yesterday and today - we want to have a government. The question is how both sides can take such a turn after what they have said," Borissov said and stressed that whether new ministers would be sought depended on the apology and the refusal of what the WCC-DB had done yesterday.

“The draft cabinet line-up, which was presented to the President, is coordinated with WCC-DB with everything that is in it," the GERB-UDF leader said.

GERB-UDF’s PM designate Mariya Gabriel presented proposed government line-up to President Radev

Yesterday, GERB-UDF PM-designate, Mariya Gabriel, returned fulfilled mandate for a cabinet to President Rumen Radev. It turned out that the folder with the proposed cabinet line-up, which was presented to the President, does not have the approval of WCC-DB and for the proposed ministers from their quota.

Shortly after 4 pm yesterday, only the GERB-UDF negotiating team appeared at the Presidency, and later it turned out that the proposal for the cabinet line-up was theirs alone.

In the meantime, however, the President has already signed a decree and so the green light has been given for this composition of the Council of Ministers to be voted on in Parliament. This is likely to happen tomorrow.

President Radev will not withdraw the decree proposing that Parliament elect GERB-UDF's PM designate

The situation is unparalleled in Bulgarian political history and the question now is what the moves might be from this point on.