The situation in Turkey after the coup attempt held last Friday has started to normalize. Transit through the border check points has been gradually resuming and communications with neighboring countries have gone back to normal. The immediate reactions to that event have been substituted by reflection and the events in Turkey are to be discussed in Brussels during the EU Foreign Affairs Council, where Bulgaria is represented by Minister of Foreign Affairs Daniel Mitov.

The recent events in Turkey remind Bulgaria how important political stability in its southern neighbor is. Turkey is Bulgaria's biggest neighbor; it is a country of much bigger economic and military power. Moreover, Turkey is one of Bulgaria's main trade partners. It received thousands of ethnic Turks from Bulgaria. Thousands of Bulgarian tourists visit that country on a daily basis. That is why, perhaps, the political parties in Bulgaria showed equal reactions to the coup attempt in Turkey, regardless of their political convictions and belonging.

President Rossen Plevneliev immediately said that stability and peace in Turkey was of key significance to Bulgaria and that this country was supporting the democratically elected institutions in Turkey. Bulgaria's Premier Boyko Borissov pointed out directly that he was against such violations of the constitution and coup attempts through the use of power. Sofia even asked its ambassador to Ankara to refrain from making comments on the events in Turkey, in order to avoid discrepancy between the official stands.

The reaction of political rivals such as the Movement for Rights and Freedoms and DOST (Democrats for Responsibility, Tolerance and Solidarity) to the latest events in Turkey was no different. This time, however, the two parties categorically condemned the coup attempt in Turkey and voiced their support for the legally elected institutions in Bulgaria's southern neighbor.

The Bulgarian Socialist Party said unexpectedly that the reaction of the Bulgarian authorities towards the events in Turkey was adequate and abandoned its intentions to initiate a no-confidence vote towards the current cabinet. Earlier BSP discussed the no-confidence vote with other parties represented at the National Assembly such as ABV, the MRF and the Bulgarian Democratic Center, but later BSP came up with the proposal to remove that topic from their agenda in the name of the national security.

The new leader of the socialist party Kornelia Ninova contends that the situation in Turkey should make Bulgaria's President summon the Consultative Council on National Security. The stand of the Bulgarian Socialist Party coincided with the position of the nationalistic Ataka party.

Perhaps, fierce political rivals showed equal reactions to the coup attempt in Turkey, because stability in that country is crucial for Bulgaria in a moment of unprecedented migration pressure towards the EU. If Turkey is destabilized, it would not be a buffer anymore between Bulgaria and the migrant flow coming from the Middle East towards Europe. Thus, Bulgaria would be legally obliged to receive migrants as a first safe country. However, undoubtedly, Bulgaria does not have the necessary resource to take that role. The current situation in Turkey is a reason for concerns that other negative events may also occur in that country. That is why Sofia continues to be cautious and follow closely the situation in Turkey.

English version: Kostadin Atanasov