Iotova: No military convoy for merchant ships; Article 4 would mean escalation
President and candidate Iliana Iotova sees no immediate danger after the drone attacks. As a constitutional change, she wants more power for municipalities.
Archive image · Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.5 bg (cropped and resized)
A week before the Oct. 25 presidential election, President Iliana Iotova reaffirmed her stance on the Black Sea on the NOVA NEWS channel. Following the latest drone attacks on merchant ships, Bulgaria faces no immediate danger, though there are risks to national security, she said. She said she had discussed joint action with Romanian President Nicușor Dan, including a moratorium on drones in the Black Sea. That would have to be followed by a ceasefire and negotiations involving Ukraine, the EU, the United States and Russia.
Iotova rejects a military escort for civilian freighters "at this stage." Anyone who gathers merchant ships into a convoy makes them a target, she warned. She also urged caution on a request for consultations under Article 4 of the NATO treaty, saying such a step would be seen as escalation. She noted that Poland and Denmark had not invoked Article 4 despite serious drone incidents, and said Bulgaria is in any case already holding active consultations with its allies.
Asked about constitutional changes, Iotova, whose running mate is Kiril Valchev, named two plans: she would strengthen decentralization and give municipalities more autonomy because Bulgaria has many capable mayors. She also wants to abolish the rule requiring the caretaker prime minister to be chosen from a fixed list of officeholders, which she called the "shameful house list." The interview aired on the program "Offensive" with Lyubo Ognyanov.