Maxim Behar: The New Parliament Is Different, but Expectations Toward the Government Are Enormous

Interview on NOVA in the program “Intersection Point”

After years of political instability, a series of snap elections, and constant clashes between political parties, Bulgaria is entering a new stage in its political development. The new National Assembly begins its work with promises of change, a calmer tone, and a clearer vision for the country’s future. For the first time in a long while, there is talk of the possibility of a more stable government that could provide predictability for society, businesses, and Bulgaria’s international partners alike.

Expectations toward the new members of parliament are extremely high. Citizens want not only a unique style of governance, but also actual results — a better economic environment, functioning institutions, reforms, and greater trust in the political system. Although there are serious challenges, however. The new majority will have to prove that it can turn promises into concrete actions and respond to public expectations in a complicated domestic and international environment.

Host: Hello and welcome to “Intersection Point.” On this last day of April, our focus is on the first working day of the deputies who entered the 52nd National Assembly. What should we expect after the political puzzle has been arranged? To discuss the new and old faces who will now work together, PR expert Maxim Behar joins us. Welcome!

Maxim: Good afternoon!

Host: Mr. Behar, we elected the new 240 deputies for the eighth time in the last five years, just to remind our viewers. But what is your first assessment? What was different this time?

Maxim: Well, everything is different. Compared to the previous seven times, of course. We wanted this to happen, and it happened. And now there are many people trembling and saying: “Oh my God, what happened? This is now a dictatorship. They now have a majority.” At the same time, throughout all these years you mentioned, and maybe even 10–15 years before that, we kept saying: “Parliament doesn’t work, the language is at an extremely low level, insults are flying around, MPs behave terribly.” There are people I know who forbade their children from watching television news. God forbid they hear some stupidity coming from the screen.

Host: Not from outside, but from Parliament itself. Specifically, from the parliamentary podium.

Maxim: There are positives, of course. One thing is certainly clear — the “Progressive Bulgaria” party has a majority. It will govern on its own. It will occasionally look for partners in the plenary hall, but it will not always need them. On the other hand, there is an extremely significant risk, and they are certainly aware of it. The people around Rumen Radev, and he himself, are quite experienced and know that there are enormous expectations. You know that in Bulgaria people generally want to become rich quickly, to have lunch, as my friend Sasho Morfov says, and do nothing. Well, maybe they will do something, but they want to get rich quickly. And now, probably according to that logic, many people will want changes very quickly. They expect to see people in prison practically tomorrow, they expect increased pensions, higher salaries, and serious reforms. This can happen; it is possible. Bulgaria is a European country. Extremely good and useful things can be done. We hope all of them will be accomplished. I am speaking here only about domestic politics. But there simply need to be capable economists who, with charisma and arguments, can convince the people in Bulgaria — those who voted for them — that besides everything else, people also need to work better. If you want to have more money, you need to work better. You need a better business environment, something the parliamentary majority, the future Council of Ministers, the government, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Economy are already working on. For us, it is especially important to have a calm and predictable business environment. In my opinion, now, with a majority that everyone hopes will last four years without instability or shocks, it is much easier to work, especially with foreign companies and investors, because there is now predictability. However, I repeat — the risk of excessive expectations remains. I hope that the colleagues and the people who will be part of the parliamentary majority understand this and will stay extremely focused, not talking too much, as I see happening so far my compliments for that — but instead sitting down and doing the work.

Host: What kind of people did you see at first glance? More engineers, more lawyers now, more economists. Does this give you the feeling that perhaps we will hear a more educated tone, a higher style of discourse, as you mentioned at the very beginning?

Maxim: There is a good mix. Such a good mix has always existed over the years. Lawyers, businesspeople, journalists — there are quite a lot of them in Parliament this time. The mix is particularly good. Most importantly, in my opinion, unless I am mistaken, only three deputies from “Progressive Bulgaria” have previous parliamentary experience. If my memory serves me correctly, maybe there are four or five.

Host: Yes, and more than 50% of all MPs are entering Parliament for the first time... Wait, let me not mislead you with the percentages so I don’t sound uncertain. But in any case, 54 percent have never been MPs before.

Maxim: That means these people are not familiar with backstage games, they are not familiar with whispers in corridors and little rooms — they are there to work. I read many enthusiastic promises from the new MPs on social media: “We are here so Bulgaria can become...” and so on. God willing, of course. I truly wish it. But this requires enormous discipline and a particularly good intellect. These people must stay focused from morning until evening, working well in Parliament, and afterward continue monitoring social media so they can understand what people — or most people — want and explain in the best viable way how it can happen. There must be very pragmatic approaches in Bulgaria. I will leave aside the judiciary. That is a topic that has been chewed over for 20 years. But there must be very pragmatic economic measures. There must be extraordinarily strong signals toward Western Europe and the rest of the world that Bulgaria is a wonderful place for investment. We have the lowest taxes in Europe. That is Bulgaria’s great secret — nobody outside Bulgaria knows it. It is our trademark. When you go to Germany or the United Kingdom and say, “Bulgaria has the lowest taxes in Europe,” people look at you and say, “Really?” And something especially important for the new government and the new majority is the promotion and presentation of Bulgaria abroad. This is the Bulgaria brand. The most important brand of all brands is the Bulgaria brand, and it must be presented in the best viable way.

Host: What kind of tone do you expect regarding foreign policy, and I mean also regarding the country’s image? Because as soon as it became clear that “Progressive Bulgaria” and Rumen Radev were leading and winning overwhelming support, foreign media also began saying that we had elected a pro-Russian leader and similar characterizations.

Maxim: I read everything, of course. I cannot judge whether it is pleasant or unpleasant. That is the opinion of journalists and media outlets. It is their right. I do not think there should now be such a dramatic turn in politics, nor should we start explaining ourselves and trying to prove that the opposite is true. But in my opinion, we should stand together within the EU and NATO and share the common position regarding the conflict in Ukraine. Regarding the war in Ukraine. Because this is an especially important dividing line. And if we remain somewhere in the middle or hesitate, that is not the most appropriate position. From the perspective of the future, it is not the right position either. We should have the same position as the major countries since we have followed them for so many years. Russia attacked Ukraine, violating absolutely all international legal norms. This is a highly unjust war. And I think that... another question is how this war should end. Whether it should stop now, whether negotiations should begin — that is already a matter of diplomacy and politics.

Host: Because of the geopolitical turmoil during the elections, did we elect more men?

Maxim: Ah, I cannot say that.

Host: How do you assess this retreat of women? A kingdom of men?

Maxim: God forbid something happens — men go to the army. Parliament will become empty. I hope nothing happens. We elected a chairperson of the Bulgarian Parliament. And she is a woman. So apparently there is a good balance. I am not entirely sure. Honestly, I have not even looked at the ratio of men to women. That never interested me. It is like looking at how many people are short, how many are tall, how many are thin, how many are overweight. But what matters is that I honestly think it is a particularly good outcome that we have a majority. We wanted this. In how many TV studios did a whole wagon of analysts — in big quotation marks — keep saying: “Oh, now there will be elections again, now all parties will have around 20 percent, now the bargaining will begin.”

Host: Now we are talking about avoiding two elections in one this autumn.

Maxim: Why should there be two elections in one? There is absolutely no logic in having elections in the autumn. There will be presidential elections.

Host: Will the trust place in them be justified?

Maxim: We cannot expect miracles to happen in five or six months. These people were elected with a four-year mandate of trust. This does not happen overnight, as I told you. It does not happen with a magic wand. Once again, Bulgaria is facing a new political landscape. And we must support those people who want to bring positive changes to the economic environment. To give confidential business the opportunity to gain experience and profit. Of course, there is probably still a lot of work to be done in the legal sphere. Some laws may need to be amended. But I think that without a highly intelligent and large-scale campaign promoting Bulgaria outside Bulgaria, forget politics — pro-Soviet, anti-Soviet, Russophobes — that does not matter so much if there are good taxes, predictability, and opportunities for foreign investors to come to Bulgaria. It seems strange to me that there is an institution called the Investment Agency. To me, this is the most important ministry. Yet it is tucked away somewhere outside Sofia, in some buildings, in some offices. If the Investment Agency becomes the center of things, Bulgaria’s economic situation can improve significantly. There are great opportunities.

Host: Will we be launched into space? I allow myself such a question because you recently attended training in the United States and returned.

Maxim: Yes, and when we returned, my wife and I became the first Bulgarians to graduate from this NASA training academy where twenty-one astronauts began their careers. Real astronauts. And Christina Koch, who was recently on Artemis II, the only woman on the mission — yesterday she was at the White House with President Trump. She started from our academy, from our course, and her newest photo is displayed there. However, since we are on this topic, it is especially important for Bulgaria to have its own astronaut. It is especially important to have a space program. Of all European countries, Bulgaria is the only one that is not a member of the European Space Association. We are an associate member, but not a full member. The only country. There is absolutely no reason for that.

When we went to the base in Huntsville, Alabama, the Bulgarian flag was waiting for us there. The flags of all space nations were displayed there. Proudly and alphabetically, our flag was among the first. Maybe it was even first. Bulgaria must have its own astronaut because — you probably do not remember, you were not born in 1994.

Host: Thank you for compliment.

Maxim: But in 1994, Bulgaria was united because of our football successes. In the same way, we should unite if we have a tremendously successful astronaut. And I hope this happens during the mandate of this government.

Host: Thank you, Mr. Behar. This is where we conclude. We need to land now, otherwise the commercials will be angry with us. Thank you to you and to our viewers. We will see each other again next week. Goodbye!

You can watch the whole interview here: https://www.maximbehar.com/en/video/440/maksim-behar-noviyat-parlament-e-po-razlichen-no-ochakvaniyata-kam-upravlenieto-sa-ogromni