Petar Haralampiev

Democratic Bulgaria supports the steps taken by caretaker Minister of Justice Yanaki Stoilov for the dismissal of Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev.

Acting on its own initiative, Bulgaria's prosecution service has instituted six case files after the US Treasury Department and State Department announced on Wednesday that they are sanctioning a total of six Bulgarians over their involvement in significant corruption. 

The Prosecutor's Office announced today that it is launching an investigation into the information disclosed by the State Department of the United States on corruption activities involving Vasil Bozhkov, Delyan Peevski, Ilko Zheliazkov, Alexander Manolev, Petar Haralampiev and Krasimir Tomov.

By a decision of the government, Petar Haralampiev was released from the post of chairperson of the State Agency for Bulgarians Abroad, the government press office said on 5th of November. Haralampiev's position will be temporarily filled by the Deputy Chairperson of the Agency, Dimitar Vladimirov, until new Chair is appointment.

The State Agency for Bulgarians Abroad, SABA, issued around 40 certificates a week over the past year falsely identifying foreign citizens as having Bulgarian heritage, the country's Specialised Prosecution said on Wednesday.

At least 20 people were arrested on Monday for allegedly taking part in a corrupt scheme that streamlined the process of granting Bulgarian citizenship to foreigners, the Specialised Prosecution announced.

Bulgaria is pushing for official recognition of a Bulgarian minority in Kosovo, not only as a follow-on to the recent recognition of a Bulgarian minority in Albania, but as part of "regular state policy", the head of the State Agency for Bulgarians, Petar Haralampiev, told BIRN on Friday.

The government has decided that Petar Haralampiev will be chairman of the State Agency for Bulgarians Abroad, the government's press office said.

Haralampiev was deputy governor of Sofia region between December 2014 and May 2017. He also served as executive manager and member of the board of directors of Balgare foundation.