124 Facts About Rumen Radev

Rumen Georgiev Radev is a Bulgarian politician and former major general who has been the President of Bulgaria since 2017.

Rumen Radev won the 2016 presidential election as an independent candidate supported by the Bulgarian Socialist Party, defeating GERB candidate Tsetska Tsacheva in the second round.

Rumen Radev was born on 18 June 1963 in Dimitrovgrad, Bulgaria.

Rumen Radev's family is from Slavyanovo in the Haskovo region.

Rumen Radev graduated from the Georgi Benkovski Bulgarian Air Force University in 1987 as the top graduate.

Rumen Radev holds a Doctor of Military Sciences degree in the field of improvement of tactical training of flight crews and simulation of air combat.

In June 2019, Rumen Radev vetoed a major government contract for the acquisition of 16 F-16 Fighting Falcons Block 70 from the United States at a cost of around 2bln lev.

Rumen Radev strongly criticised the deal, accusing the government of authoritarianism and stated that he believed it had agreed to downgrades in the jets' avionics and armament, in order to get a lower purchasing price, which he deemed too high for what they are worth.

Rumen Radev added, that as a former pilot and air force commander, he didn't believe that the deal was in Bulgaria's best interests.

In November 2019, Rumen Radev refused to sign the decree appointing Ivan Geshev to the post of Chief Public Prosecutor of Bulgaria, following the latter's election to the post by Bulgaria's Supreme Judicial Council.

Rumen Radev did not officially declare the motive for his refusal in written form, instead deciding to explain it personally to the media.

Rumen Radev remarked that Geshev was the only candidate for the post and opined that the single-candidate nature of his election was supported by Borisov's government.

Rumen Radev expressed the opinion that Geshev's candidacy had been supported only by government-controlled institutions and not by civic ones, which in his eyes led to a lack of public confidence in the institution.

The relations between Rumen Radev and the newly appointed general prosecutor quickly soured, as Geshev released what he stated was a wiretap of Rumen Radev discussing his involvement in alleged criminal activities.

Rumen Radev further questioned the motives as to why it appeared to him as though the general prosecutor "saw crime and corruption in everything, except for the council of ministers".

On 4 February 2020, Rumen Radev announced that he had formally withdrawn confidence in Borisov's government.

Rumen Radev pointed out that there was, in his opinion, a strong crisis in the governance of all levels, a lack of will to reform and fight corruption, and a state of morally-questionable lawlessness in the country.

Rumen Radev objected to a paragraph criminalizing the spread of "fake news" with a fine of up to 5,000 euros.

Surprisingly, Rumen Radev vetoed a paragraph added on the insistence of the Bulgarian Socialist Party, which was supposed to impose price controls on essential goods.

Rumen Radev concluded that the conflict was "only in Borisov's head", stating that he had never called for the state of the emergency to be lifted and merely disagreed with the government's handling of it.

In October 2020, Rumen Radev attended an investment forum in Estonia, but his visit was cut short after it was revealed that he had been exposed to a COVID-19 positive individual while in Bulgaria.

Some sources alleged that Rumen Radev had been aware of that prior to travelling, while the president accused political opponents of deliberately orchestrating a campaign against him in order to tarnish his image, displaying a negative PCR test he had obtained prior to his official trip.

Borisov accused President Rumen Radev of flying a consumer drone into his residence in order to take the pictures.

Rumen Radev condemned the leaks and called it an "insane" invasion of the prime minister's privacy.

Rumen Radev added that he owns a drone, but that the accusation that he personally piloted it into the prime minister's residence to take pictures was part of Borisov's "fantasy and paranoia".

Rumen Radev made a televised address to the nation, in which he demanded that both the entire government and the chief prosecutor resign, openly calling them "mafia".

On 12 January 2021, Rumen Radev signed the election law, scheduling the next regular Bulgarian elections for April 4.

Rumen Radev voted using the newly installed machine voting system, and said that he voted for "a free, just and prosperous Bulgaria".

Rumen Radev dismissed the possibility of convening a Grand National Assembly, as proposed by GERB leader Boyko Borisov.

Rumen Radev announced that the caretaker government's priorities would be to organise fair elections without vote buying, sort out the supply of vaccines and present a Recovery and Development Plan to the European Union.

Rumen Radev further hailed the cabinet as a government built on "consensus, combing experts from the left, center and right".

Rumen Radev generally praised the work of the First Yanev caretaker cabinet, especially highlighting the decrease in vote buying and invalid ballots, as well as the revelations of massive corruption in the state, as a success.

The previous ruling party, GERB, consistently accused President Rumen Radev of using the caretaker cabinet as a "pre-election headquarters" and of trying to take over the state.

On 1 February 2021, Rumen Radev announced his intention to seek a second term as President of Bulgaria, with his running mate being the incumbent vice president, Iliana Yotova.

Rumen Radev declared that his candidacy was aimed at building a "stronger state" and continuing the message of change.

Rumen Radev called on voters to not become apathetic claiming that they were facing the "organised forces of the status qou" in the second round.

The most controversial topic of the debate came during discussions of Bulgaria-Russia relations, with Gerdjikov arguing for continued sanctions, while Rumen Radev called the current sanctions ineffective.

The election of Rumen Radev was hailed as a major victory by PP co-leader, Kiril Petkov, saying that "we will continue the change with President Rumen Radev".

Rumen Radev was congratulated by BSP leader, Korneliya Ninova, who highlighted the overwhelming support for President Rumen Radev.

Rumen Radev officially began his second term on 22 January 2022, with the inauguration ceremony taking place in front of the "Dondukov-2" Palace- the workplace of the president.

Rumen Radev underlined the "high responsibility" of the Petkov government to "reform the broken political system and fight corruption, illegality, inequality and the forces of the deep state".

Rumen Radev criticised Petkov's decision to change the board of directors of the state company Bulgargaz, claiming it was "reminiscent of the style of governance of Boyko Borisov".

The conflict between the PM and President intensified after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, with President Rumen Radev opposing the imposition of sanctions and the sending of lethal aid, while Kiril Petkov was more open to it.

Rumen Radev was critical of attempts by the government to reshuffle Bulgaria's security services.

For example, after Prime Minister Petkov was attacked with snowballs during a speech on Mount Shipka for Bulgaria's Liberation day, President Rumen Radev dismissed calls to change the leadership of key security services because it was not "a breach of security".

Rumen Radev criticised the government, claiming that the government's aggressive foreign policy approach, including state visits to Kyiv, imperilled energy security and led to higher inflation.

President Rumen Radev was critical of the French proposal, and criticised the Petkov government for not "taking a clear position on it" and instead "transferring responsibility to the National Assembly".

Simultaneously, Rumen Radev underlined his readiness to form a caretaker cabinet and called on MPs to "refrain from becoming political nomads".

Rumen Radev was criticised by the BSP for the appointment of BSP members, with Ninova insisting that the party will not take responsibility for their actions and that this was never attempt by Rumen Radev to meddle in the internal affairs of the party.

Some in the media accused Rumen Radev of postponing in order to keep the Donev caretaker cabinet in power for a longer period of time.

Rumen Radev further confirmed that he would only give the second mandate to PP after the New Year.

On 3 February 2023, Rumen Radev reappointed Donev as caretaker prime minister, after the Bulgarian Parliament failed to form a regular government.

Rumen Radev set reducing poverty and insuring stable levels of CPI as the two main goals of the reappointed caretaker government.

The tenure of Galab Donev's second caretaker cabinet ended on 6 June 2023, with the election of the Denkov cabinet, during the transfer of power, Rumen Radev praised the caretaker cabinet for their ability to reign in the various crises afflicting Bulgaria, specifically by lowering fuel prices.

Rumen Radev's statement led to key DB figures to call for his impeachment in the next parliament.

Shortly after the convocation of the 49th National Assembly, Rumen Radev re-appointed Plamen Tonchev to a second term as head of the State Agency for National Security.

Rumen Radev dismissed these accusations, highlighting that "the security services don't belong to the President, but to Bulgaria as a whole".

Rumen Radev's statement led to the organisation of protests by PPDB and other organisations outside the presidential building calling for Rumen Radev's impeachment due to his alleged breach of his constitutional duties as well as condemning his allegedly pro-Russian views.

Rumen Radev responded with scepticism to calls by GERB PM-Candidate, Mariya Gabriel, for the removal of Ivan Geshev, citing the fact that those nominated by GERB in the Supreme Judicial Council had previously voted in favour of Geshev.

Some media outlets accused Rumen Radev of attempting to "save" Geshev, by not signing a newly passed law which would have lowered the number of votes needed to remove the General Prosecutor a few days before the vote on Geshev's future was to take place.

Rumen Radev further stated that he, as the nominal commander-in-chief of the Bulgarian Armed Forces should have greater involevement in determining the foreign policy direction of the country.

Rumen Radev refused to sign the dismissal, calling the motivations for Todorov's dismissal to be "contradicted by evidence from the Ministry of Interior statistics" and "part of a wide-scale purge within the state institutions".

Rumen Radev further accused the government of trying to secretly sell the oil refinery in Burgas.

Rumen Radev further criticised the government's decision to impose the tax on Gazprom, pointing out the fact that it led to a negative reaction by Hungary's government.

Rumen Radev condemned the planned removal of the Monument to the Soviet Army, Sofia, calling it an "aggressive offensive against statehood, history and memory".

Rumen Radev further accused the Bulgarian government of authoritarianism due to the proposed constitutional changes.

Rumen Radev went on to declare that "today we put an end to the countdown, to the dissolution and declare that Bulgaria will remain a Republic of equal and free citizens".

The Constitutional Court ruled in Rumen Radev's favour, invalidating all acts made by the Chamber of Audit during her time as acting chief.

Rumen Radev challenged the "Law on the Preservation of Agricultural Land", due to its enabling of expanded construction of renewable energy sources on high productivity agricultural land.

Rumen Radev challenged the decision of the government to impose a tax on gas passing through the Gazprom pipelines located in Bulgaria, on the grounds it violated the right to private property.

Rumen Radev vetoed the newly passed "Energy Law", citing the fact that the liberalization of the energy market would negatively impact Bulgarian lower-income consumers.

On 8 January 2024, Rumen Radev officially submitted his challenge of the Constitutional Amendments to the Constitutional Court, which focused on three major areas within the new constitutional changes: the alleged changes within the balance of powers which could only be authorised by a Grand National Assembly, alleged contradictions with other sections of the constitution, the alleged non-compliance with the time-frame for the debate of constitutional amendments set by the Constitution.

On 23 January 2024, Rumen Radev submitted his challenge of the election of two new Justice by the National Assembly to fill the vacancies within the Constitutional Court, claiming that their election violated the constitution by not following the proper procedures and not being transparent enough.

On 12 February 2024, Rumen Radev vetoed an amendments to the Punishment-Procedural Code, which would have revived the recently abolished Supreme Judicial Council for an indeterminate period of time, due to the fact that this amendment contradicted the recently approved amendments to the Constitution which had liquidated the institution and split it into two separate councils.

Gabriel officially presented her cabinet to Rumen Radev, which was similar in composition to the outgoing Denkov Government, however had a number of changes, specifically the Defense Minister and Energy Minister.

Shortly thereafter, Rumen Radev published a decree proposing the candidacy of Gabriel to the National Assembly.

Rumen Radev refused on the grounds that according to the Constitution the president only presents a nominee for prime minister, and is not responsible for the composition of the Cabinet.

Rumen Radev commented on the resignation of one of the potential caretaker-PM candidates, the deputy Ombudsman, by highlighting her nature as the only "non-political" candidate and suggesting the possibility of her resignation being forced.

Additionally, Governor of the BNB, Dimitar Rumen Radev, similarly expressed reservations about serving as caretaker PM, due to the non-political status of the BNB.

Rumen Radev called on Glavchev to form a politically neutral cabinet and to present the cabinet before the President within a 7-day time frame, in order to insure the early elections could be scheduled together with the European Elections.

President Rumen Radev officially commented the proposed changes four days after their announcement, making it clear that he did not support the appointment of Mitov due to his connections to GERB, and asking PM Glavchev to meet with him in order to discuss the changes further.

Later that day, Rumen Radev signed the cabinet changes, thus enabling the change of two caretaker ministers.

Rumen Radev severely criticised the decision of the Glavchev Government to approve the construction of a private children's hospital in Sofia.

Unlike in previous National Assemblies, wherein the president usually made a speech during the opening session, this time Rumen Radev did not deliver a speech.

Rumen Radev justified his decision by stating that he had already outlined his main theses in previous speeches.

Rumen Radev gave the third mandate to ITN, justifying the decision by citing their consistent positions.

Rumen Radev gave Grancharova an ultimatum to nominate another, less controversial person to the position in the next three hours in order to avert a constitutional crisis.

Rumen Radev's decision was followed by serious arguments among jurists about whether it was constitutional.

Rumen Radev further noted that fighting vote buying should be a key priority of the next government, implying that a change within the Ministry of Interior was necessary.

The personal conflict between Rumen Radev and disputed DPS leader, Delyan Peevski, intensified in the run-up and following the October 2024 Bulgarian parliamentary election.

Rumen Radev, vehemently denied the allegations made by Peevski, and accused him of attempting to extract political profit from the situation.

Rumen Radev justified his decision by stating that DPS-NN had "self-excluded" itself from the government formation process by stating its support for new elections and further stated that the decision was fully in line with the constitution.

Rumen Radev further called for the re-introduction of machine voting in order to restore trust in the electoral system.

In February 2017, Rumen Radev condemned and called for an end to the EU sanctions against Russia, while at the same time describing the Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation as a "violation of international law".

On 2 October 2022, Rumen Radev refused to sign a declaration produced by other Eastern and Central European Presidents, which endorsed future Ukrainian ascension into NATO, citing the fact that discussions of Ukrainian membership were "too early" and had to involve collective decisions by NATO structures.

In February 2023, Rumen Radev signed a joint-declaration with the presidents of 9 other Eastern and Central European countries which condemned Russian aggression against Ukraine.

In July 2023, President Rumen Radev met with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky, as part of his visit to Bulgaria on 6 July.

Rumen Radev, in turn, criticised the government for "not consulting him" before inviting President Zelensky, as well as not putting the national interest of Bulgaria first.

In September 2023, Rumen Radev was accused by some media outlets of avoiding a meeting with Ukrainian president Zelensky during the annual UN conference in New York.

Rumen Radev has generally been supportive of the Trump administration's approach towards Russia, expressing hope that Trump's policy will lead to an end of hostilities in Ukraine and has urged the European Union to adopt a similar foreign policy towards Russia.

On 17 March 2017, Rumen Radev condemned as 'absolutely unacceptable' what he described as a Turkish intervention in Bulgaria's 2017 parliamentary election after the Turkish ambassador to Bulgaria was found to have appeared in a campaign clip for one of Bulgaria's political parties and after Turkish Social Affairs minister was found to have agitated and offer incentives for Bulgarian Turks in Turkey to cross the border in an organized voting campaign and vote for the same party.

Rumen Radev stated that he had referred the matter to the European Union.

Rumen Radev became the only EU head of state to attend Erdogan's inauguration, stating that his mandate was not given to him by either the European Commission or the Bulgarian Government, but by the Bulgarian people.

On 24 January 2018, Rumen Radev condemned the Turkish invasion of northern Syria aimed at ousting US-backed Syrian Kurds from the enclave of Afrin, and insisted that the European Union should intervene to stop it.

In December 2022, Rumen Radev visited Turkish president Erdogan, achieving a deal to enhance border security and increase cooperation in the energy sector.

On 29 May 2023, Rumen Radev congratulated Erdogan with his re-election after the 2023 Turkish Presidential Election, and later attended his inauguration, being the only European Union head of state to do so.

Rumen Radev has been critical of the EU accession of the Republic of North Macedonia.

Rumen Radev has opposed the possibility of lifting the veto on North Macedonia's Eurointegration, at the very least until Bulgarians are added to the Constitution of North Macedonia.

Rumen Radev has asked for increased European Union-level action to prevent hate speech against Bulgarians living in North Macedonia.

Rumen Radev condemned the behaviour of the newly elected president of North Macedonia, Gordana Siljanovska-Davkova, and called for North Macedonia to adhere to existing treaties.

Rumen Radev participated in a "prayer for peace" within the Central Sofia Synagogue, together with many other Bulgarian politicians, expressing disgust at "the cruel and violent acts committed by the terrorists" and solidarity with Israel.

Rumen Radev called for the Zhelayzkov government to take more proactive measures in relation to the death of Bulgarian UN worker, Marin Marinov, as a result of actions by the IDF in Gaza.

In February 2019, Rumen Radev condemned the Bulgarian Government's recognition of Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido as interim president of Venezuela during the 2019 Venezuelan presidential crisis, adding that he believed the government had overstepped its authority in recognizing the opposition leader as interim president.

Rumen Radev further criticised the EU's recognition of Guaido, urging both the country and the EU to remain neutral and refrain from recognizing Guaido, as he viewed such recognition as imposing an ultimatum, which he deemed would only aggravate the crisis in Venezuela.

Rumen Radev has been very critical of the positions of Austria and the Netherlands, who in December 2022 announced they would veto the ascension of Bulgaria into the Schengen Area, calling the decision "cynical" and in contrast with the concept of European solidarity.

Rumen Radev further continued to insist that there were no valid reasons for Bulgaria's non-ascension into the Schengen Area, citing a 2011 European Commission Report which found Bulgaria ready to join the Schengen Area.

Rumen Radev has enjoyed positive approval ratings for the vast majority of his presidency.

Rumen Radev later stated that his primary reason for joining the party had been so that he would be deployed to fly in a supersonic jet, but added that he was not ashamed of his past and was proud of the things he did.

Rumen Radev left the party in 1990, when a newly enacted law forbade members of the country's armed forces from being members of political parties.

Rumen Radev has not been a member of any political parties since and his candidacy in the 2016 elections was supported by an independent initiative committee affiliated with the Bulgarian Socialist Party, rather than by a formal nomination by any party.

Rumen Radev later married Desislava Gencheva, who was previously married to the BSP MP Georgi Svilenski.

Apart from Bulgarian, Rumen Radev is fluent in Russian, German and English.

Rumen Radev stated his support for the efforts of the Bulgarian church to introduce religious education in Bulgarian schools and declared that "the support of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the spiritual well-being of the faithful remains the first priority for the State".

Rumen Radev expressed his admiration for Pope Francis, calling him "the voice of the weak and the underprivileged".