Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

Reactions to Bulgaria's portfolio in the European Commission - from satisfaction to disappointment

Photo: AP/ BTA

Bulgarian Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva will be given the portfolio "Start-ups, Research and Innovation" in the next European Commission. This was announced today in the European Parliament by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. Later, in a brief statement to the media, Ekaterina Zaharieva described her portfolio as "the portfolio of the future" and then refused to answer journalists' questions, BNR's Brussels correspondent Angelina Piskova reported from Brussels.

Ekaterina Zaharieva

According to European People's Party (EPP) MEP Andrey Kovachev, the portfolio is "very good and important for the European economy and competitiveness with other parts of the world".


"We were very late in the process and it is normal to get such a portfolio. We consume European politics, we have been part of it for a long time and in this case we get what is left at the end," Ilhan Kyuchyuk, MEP from Renew Europe, told BNR.  
Reactions in Bulgaria were also mixed.


According to GERB leader Boyko Borissov (Zaharieva is a GERB candidate), this portfolio has some of the strongest and best-funded programmes. He recalled that during the election campaign, there was a lot of talk about "Europe's competitiveness against America, China". "It is our Commissioner who is given this portfolio. Many, many thanks," Borissov said.

Tsoncho Ganev, deputy leader of Vazrazhdane, said: "This portfolio reflects the EU's attitude towards Bulgaria.


"We in the Bulgarian Socialist Party think that Bulgaria has not been given a strong portfolio in the new European Commission," said Borislav Gutsanov, leader of the BSP parliamentary group. "We see that Ursula von der Leyen has given quite good chances to Romania, where they will have a second person in the Commission as vice-president," he noted.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Showers are expected across much of Bulgaria over the weekend

On Saturday, minimum temperatures will range from 8 to 13°C , around 9°C in Sofia. It will be mostly cloudy with rain in many areas. There will be temporary breaks in cloud cover over southern regions. Overnight into Sunday, cloudiness will begin to..

published on 10/17/25 7:05 PM

Fourth air ambulance helicopter arrives in Bulgaria

Bulgaria has received its fourth air ambulance helicopter.  “The new aircraft will be based at the Georgi Benkovski Air Force Academy hangar in Dolna Mitropolia. From there, it will serve a wide regional area and make a significant contribution to the..

published on 10/17/25 4:24 PM

BNR will host 2025 Public Broadcasters International conference

The Bulgarian National Radio will host the 2025  Public Broadcasters International (PBI) Annual Conference . The prestigious forum will be held from 20 to 22 October for the first time in the Bulgarian capital Sofia. The theme of the PBI..

published on 10/17/25 3:34 PM