site.btaParliament Adopts Report of Ad Hoc Committee on Memorandum with Gemcorp

At its sitting on Thursday, the National Assembly adopted, 129-54 with 8 abstentions, a report on the activity of the parliamentary Ad Hoc Committee probing the signing and termination of a USD 1 billion memorandum with Gemcorp Holding and IP3 Corporation by the Kiril Petkov Cabinet last year. The document was supported by GERB-UDF, BSP for Bulgaria, Vazrazhdane, and Bulgarian Rise, while Continue the Change and Democratic Bulgaria voted against or abstained.

The MPs decided to send the report to the Interior Ministry, the State Agency for National Security (SANS), and the Council of Ministers so that they can get acquainted with the document and take actions within their competencies.

According to the report, Continue the Change co-leader Kiril Petkov, as a prime minister from December 2021 to August 2022, did not entask the SANS with a check of the companies with whom the memorandum was concluded on March 23, 2022, either before or after the signing. The SANS issued a report on the memorandum on April 20, 2022 but despite its conclusions, it was only on July 20, 2022 that Petkov submitted the report in the Council of Ministers. By decision of the cabinet, the memorandum had to be terminated but that was not done until November 28, 2022.

Explaining why he voted against the Ad Hoc Committee's report, Iskren Mitev MP of Continue the Change said that it is sad how instead of doing something meaningful for Bulgarian citizens, Parliament is debating a completely made-up report. The memorandum has no consequences for Bulgaria, it is a non-binding agreement, he explained.

Ad Hoc Committee Chair Desislava Trifonova (GERB-UDF) commented that Petkov had hidden the SANS' report, including from his partners in the coalition government [BSP for Bulgaria, Democratic Bulgaria, and There Is Such a People]. In her words, Petkov and Continue the Change co-leader Assen Vassilev [finance minister in the Kiril Petkov Cabinet] blatantly lied to the media that the memorandum had been terminated. "I hope that there will be an investigation of the Bulgarian prosecution that will allow the data to be declassified, so that it can become clear what these two have done, what national treason they have committed, and how they have given the national energy sector and its management to the Russian Federation," Trifonova said.

Stanislav Anastassov MP of Movement for Rights and Freedoms commented that it will be seen whether the memorandum has truly not caused any damages to Bulgaria. In his words, it is not yet clear how much information about the Bulgarian energy sector has ended up in Gemcorp, for which it is clear there are links with the close circle of those governing the Russian Federation.

Iliyan Yonchev MP of BSP for Bulgaria commented that the country's security has been undermined, because it has not been checked and it has not become clear how Gemcorp became part of the memorandum. In his words, initially there was the US' IP3 Corporation and then suddenly Gemcorp appeared, for which there are suspected links with Russian capital.

Atanas Atanassov MP of Democratic Bulgaria commented that the vote on the Ad Hoc Committee's report was included in the agenda at the request of GERB, and that is surely connected to the government-forming mandate, so that everyone in Parliament would  quarrel.

Tsoncho Ganev of Vazrazhdane commented that in this parliament there are people who self-identify as Euro-Atlanticians and loyal partners but at the same time are direct partners of companies and oligarchs linked to Putin.