site.btaPM Petkov, European Chief Prosecutor Kovesi Vow to Work Together to Counter EU Fraud in Bulgaria

Prime Minister Kiril Petkov thanked European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kovesi for their comprehensive discussion, which was held "in a very constructive spirit and with the joint ambition that we will work together to ensure that Bulgaria is not the venue of violations, corruption and any type of crimes related to EU funds". Petkov and the visiting European Chief Prosecutor gave a joint news conference here on Wednesday.

"I am grateful to Mrs. Kovesi, who said that the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) and the Bulgarian Government will work together to achieve real results," Petkov said.

Kovesi in turn thanked Petkov for his leadership, resolve and clear vision regarding the fight against corruption. "We share the same vision and speak the same language," she said.

Laura Kovesi said that the EPPO has received a record-high number of complaints, based on which they have started over 120 investigations, explaining that EPPO will publish its annual report at the end of this week or the beginning of next week, where the statistics concerning Bulgaria can be seen.

She said that these concern alerts about violations related to EU funds, public procurements, agricultural subsidies fraud in the construction sector and COVID-19 recovery funds.  

The Bulgarian Prime Minister said that all crimes related to EU funds, committed after 2017, can be investigated.

The European Chief Prosecutor further said that the Bulgarian Council of Ministers will be a contact point for EPPO. "This is a clear sign of a strong commitment at the highest level," she said, noting that it is important that there is no monopoly in Bulgaria over the types of authorities that can alert the EPPO. There are seven different types of institutions that can submit alerts, she said, adding that citizens, NGOs and journalists can also do so.