Bulgarian PM Mulls Cabinet Reshuffle

Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has said he is considering changes to his cabinet.

Borisov has made no comments about which ministers he would like to replace.

In an interview with private national bTV station's breakfast show, he has made clear he will inform his GERB party's "partners" from the Reformist Bloc and the Patriotic Front prior to announcing any names.

GERB's minority government depends on support from loose alliance called Reformist Bloc, which is the junior partner in the cabinet, and on the support of the Patriotic Front, a nationalist coalition which has no ministers. Under the 2009-2013 cabinet, Borisov was often able to decide on reshuffles unilaterally, being just a few Parliament seats short of a majority.

Commenting on the forthcoming presidential elections, which are less than three months away, the Prime Minister has again refused to name the candidate and has vowed to do so in September.

However, he has also made clear he will call early elections if his party loses.

There are no presidential candidates announced by big parties as of July 14, 2016. Speculation continues about whether Borisov considers running himself. Socialist leader Korneliya Ninova has ruled herself out.

Borisov has also welcomed a demand from Ninova's Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) to reverse a ban on the construction of Belene Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) tabled on Wednesday.

In his words, Bulgaria needs to have a Plan B in case it fails to sell the nuclear equipment it will receive after paying hundreds of millions of euro to Russian company Atomstroyexport upon a ruling by a Geneva-based arbitration. Earlier, he suggested a move to unfreeze the project should not be excluded as an option.

Sofia currently seeks to sell the reactor to Iran or another "third country".

Borisov has added that, following his visit to Iran on Monday and Tuesday, Bulgaria could help to turn the Black Sea into a key transport route between Asia and Europe.

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