“The fragmented results (of the election) may make it difficult for any party to form a government. (…) The next government faces an array of policy challenges, including mitigating the health and economic impacts of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, addressing public pressure to tackle corruption and organized crime, and managing Bulgaria’s external relations amid escalating tensions in the Black Sea region. (…) The U.S. State Department’s 2020 Investment Climate Statement for Bulgaria describes corruption as “endemic, particularly on large infrastructure projects and in the energy sector” and “in public procurement and use of EU funds.” The influence of oligarchs and criminal groups over some decisionmaking processes and state institutions also is a concern.(…)

Bulgaria’s location gives it strategic importance for an array of U.S. security concerns about Russia, the Black Sea, and conflicts in the Middle East,” reads a US Congressional Research Service Bulgaria overview report.