The Bulgarian Parliament decided this Thursday that the Balkan country will completely suspend imports of Russian oil from October 1, 2024, a year later than initially announced.
The resolution was approved by the parties that make up the heterogeneous government coalition, the reformist alliance We Pursue Change – Democratic Bulgaria (PP-DB), the conservative and nationalist Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) and the Rights and Freedoms Movement. (DSP), the party that represents the Turkish minority in Bulgaria (around 9% of the population), and which in total guarantees 168 of the 240 seats in Parliament.
This coalition in power was imposed on the deputies of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), the ultranationalist Vazrazhdane (Renaissance) and the anti-system There is Such a People (ITP, in its original acronym), three defined pro-Russian formations that reject the oil veto From Russia.
Following the sanctions imposed by the European Union on Russia following the military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Sofia obtained an exception until the end of 2024 to continue importing Russian oil, processed in the country’s only refinery located in Burgas, on the banks of the River Black. Sea and property of the Russian giant Lukoil.
The current Bulgarian Government had planned to complete these purchases next October, but postponed the measure, among other reasons, for fear of a sharp increase in fuel prices.
Source: TSF
