The last years have been filled with challenges, difficulties, political, economic and social upheavals. The results of the parliamentary elections of October 2024 put the future of our country at stake. We made decisions that helped us realize the need for unity, a common path, common goals. In the name of the people, the country and our party.
The 51st Congress of the BSP will determine the political future of our party. Our decisions today must give a clear signal to all socialists and left-thinking people that the BSP is a modern, left-wing party that fights for the working people, protects vulnerable groups and gives everyone an equal voice.
Our task is to restore trust in the BSP, trust that is an integral part of us. Our party is more than 130 years old. and has a key role in politics at the regional, national and European level.
In local politics, our mayors and municipal councilors are the backbone of the BSP. Without their activity and perseverance, we cannot develop active politics. They are the beginning of our ideas, they build the foundation, they are an integral part of the organizational and ideological life of the BSP.
Their role is also important in relation to the structural and cohesion funds coming from the EU. Together with the mayors from the BSP, we are fighting for direct application to the European institutions for European funding, aimed at real and urgently needed projects in the municipalities and regions.
The future leadership of the party should assign a significant role to our municipal and regional structures. From them we can draw knowledge, experience and information about the needs of socialists throughout the country. Let us return to our roots and become the best organized political machine.
At the national level, constant political turbulence has begun to become harmful to the state and the people. Circumstances have created the need to make a difficult, but statesmanlike and long-term decision. We have become part of a government, together with our political opponent.
We are part of this government because only in this way can we truly defend left-wing policies and left-wing people. I know that some of you are divided, but we must be united! Only together will we overcome the difficulties and ensure that our policies are implemented.
Policies to overcome social inequalities and prevent demographic catastrophe; guarantee free, timely and accessible health care; quality education; competitive economy and jobs; fair working conditions and decent pay; effective judicial system; fair administration of justice; end to corrupt practices. Our mission is to work for peace and cooperation between nations, to uphold the dignity of Bulgaria in the world.
I am proud that the BSP is the only left-wing party in Europe for the last 12 months of political instability, which after long negotiations is part of the government. We are the only ones in the Union that have won a place for left-wing ideas in the government and guarantee that social policy will be a priority. We can achieve all this only if we are united.
At the European level, united, we managed to protect Bulgarian national interests.
With your support, with the Bulgarian industry, academia and the NGO sector, we fought for nuclear energy to be recognized as strategic. The BSP's position was clear and categorical and we made the whole of Europe hear it. There will be nuclear energy in Europe thanks to us!
But the battle continues. The topic of the Belene NPP has been raised again. Bulgaria is the only country in the world with a ready site and available equipment that is not being launched. Our EU partners are honestly perplexed. Such projects of strategic importance are key to energy security and independence in Europe.
Europe looks to us when we talk about energy. Bulgaria is the Union's path to energy security and stability. Energy is the foundation on which a functioning economy must stand. Without energy, we have no functioning industries, we have no high-paying jobs, there is no progress. Our geographical location is of strategic importance for the EU when we talk about an energy union and connectivity. We need to build a connected electricity transmission network along the "South-North" and "East-West" axes. The beginning is always Bulgaria - we are a designated leader and driver of this process.
There are many reasons for this. Bulgaria is the largest energy producer in the region. We have a balanced energy mix – nuclear, coal, renewables. We produce enough electricity for national needs and for export.
And here is the role of the BSP. Because of the expertise, skills, management experience and long-term view. We have some of the greatest professionals in the field. We have proven it over the years. And we will continue to prove it! Therefore, we must show a united front and be the factor in governance that guarantees that projects such as the Belene NPP, the Chaira PVPP, the expansion of the Chiren gas storage facility and the protection of coal regions will not remain in the background or "pass between the drops" of someone's external interest. We owe it to all socialists and the entire Bulgarian people! We can determine European energy policy.
Europe needs us. Our left-wing partners need us. Let us improve and strengthen our role in the PES and our relations with the left parties in Europe.
20 years ago, the BSP government signed the treaty for Bulgaria's accession to the EU and charted its true civilizational path of development. Today, the responsibility once again falls on us to be part of processes that will determine the future of our country. The next important step on the path to European unity and integration of our country is joining the European Economic and Monetary Union. The Eurozone is not just a currency, but a mechanism for a real and comprehensive monetary policy that guarantees price stability, economic prosperity and a rise in the standard of living! Our responsibility, as a party that cares about the people, is to respond to the fears of every Bulgarian citizen with an objective and targeted information campaign!
Dear comrades, let us move forward with constructive energy, in the spirit of unity, camaraderie and support.
It is time for the BSP to update its priorities and once again become a determining factor in Bulgarian political reality.
We can bear the responsibility! Our members and supporters expect from us policies for a more – normal, more equal, more just and more dignified life.
Success to the 51st Congress of the BSP. The decisions made today will shape the future tomorrow! It depends on us! Together!