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'Cooling, not a reversal' β€” Why Bulgaria's new Russia-friendly leader is unlikely to become EU's next Orban (kyivindependent.com)
submitted 3 months ago by to c/ukraine@sopuli.xyz
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The landslide victory of ex-President Rumen Radev's party in Bulgaria's April 19 parliamentary election is seen by many as a boost to Russia-friendly, Ukraine-skeptic voices within the European Union.

Running on an anti-corruption platform, Radev's Progressive Bulgaria (PB) secured 44.6% of the vote, winning a majority and a chance to govern without a coalition partner.

The result could strain Ukraine's relations with Bulgaria, a 6-million-strong NATO and EU member that has backed Kyiv since R

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[–] 27 points 3 months ago (3 children)

What I don't understand here: How can you convince your voters that you are anti-corruption while at the same time being in support or at least friendly to one of the most corrupt countries in the world.

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  • [–] 3 points 3 months ago*

    The thing is that in Bulgaria current "pro-EU" politicians (think Borisov and Peevski) are so directly dependent on Putin, that anyone who is just friendly with him looks already better. I know it is a superficial observation, but this is the vote of superficial people. As a president, Radev had plenty of opportunities to substantiate his anti-corruption rethoric, and he missed them. It makes little difference whether he did it out of bad intention or inability (which is often claimed, but hard to confirm).

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