Bulgaria’s National Security Service will no longer provide state-funded security to DPS leader Delyan Peevski and GERB leader Boyko Borissov, Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev said on Wednesday.
Demerdzhiev explained the decision followed an assessment by the relevant institutions and should not be viewed as politically motivated.
“Both have sufficient resources. If they believe they are under threat, they can arrange private security themselves. State-funded protection, which has continued for decades, ends as of today,” he said.
GERB deputy chairman Tomislav Donchev criticised the move, saying it appeared to be “an emotional, perhaps even political decision, rather than an institutional one”.
“This is not merely about Boyko Borissov as a party leader, but about a former prime minister and former chief secretary of the Interior Ministry with longstanding issues related to organised crime,” Donchev said.
He added that Bulgaria has a historical problem when it comes to the safety and security of former prime ministers.
Editing by Miglena Ivanova
