Weather In Bulgaria On March 29: Sunny Skies and Rising Temperatures Across The Country
Bulgaria is set to experience favorable weather conditions on March 29, with mostly sunny skies forecasted across the country
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By Kerin Hope
Financial Times
Rosen Plevneliev, a former entrepreneur, has won Bulgaria's presidential election, capturing 52.5 per cent of the vote against 47.5 per cent for his socialist opponent, former foreign minister Ivaylo Kalfin, in Sunday's run-off contest.
Mr Plevneliev stepped down as regional affairs minister to run as the candidate of the governing right-of-centre GERB (Citizens for the European development of Bulgaria) party. Analysts said his victory cemented the party's grip on power, with voters staying loyal despite continuing economic austerity in the European Union's poorest member-state.
He replaces Georgi Parvanov, a former socialist party leader with close ties to Moscow, who was not eligible to run after serving two five-year terms.
Mr Plevneliev pledged to accelerate reform of the judiciary, which is overseen by the non-executive president, and reduce Bulgaria's dependence on Russia for its energy supply.
The presidential vote was held alongside local government elections. These were tainted by allegations of widespread vote-buying by GERB and the main opposition socialists in tightly contested mayoral races, analysts said.
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Brazen Bulgarian gangs "terrorise the elderly and rob them over their life savings with increasingly aggressive phone scams nettling millions of euros," according to an AFP story.
The prospect of US President Donald Trump's moving closer to Russia has scrambled the strategy of "balancing East and West" used for decades by countries like Bulgaria, the New York Times says.
Bulgarians have benefited a lot from their EU membership, with incomes rising and Brussels overseeing politicians, according to a New York Times piece.
German businesses prefer to trade with Bulgaria rather than invest into the country, an article on DW Bulgaria's website argues.
The truth about Bulgaria and Moldova's presidential elections is "more complicated" and should not be reduced to pro-Russian candidates winning, the Economist says.
President-elect Rumen Radev "struck a chord with voters by attacking the status quo and stressing issues like national security and migration," AFP agency writes after the presidential vote on Sunday.
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