The chairman of the Party of European Socialists (PES) and Bulgarian MEP Sergey Stanishev announced his decision not to run for a fourth term in a row at the head of the PES at the upcoming congress on October 14 and 15 in Berlin.

The reasons for this decision are political, Stanishev pointed out at a press conference in Sofia.

He stated that he did not seek political support from Bulgaria, recalling that since 2011 he has been PES chairman 4 times - once with temporary and three times with full mandates.

"It should be clear that one party cannot appoint the president of the PES, of this whole big family. But you also cannot be the president of the PES if behind you, not only formally but also in reality, you do not have a strong and authoritative party."

Stanishev warned that a new risky stage is coming for Europe, which must find its place in the changing world.

"The European Union's economic dependence on external factors, and I don't just mean the dependence on Russia for gas supplies or oil supplies. And we could enter a period of stagflation - the worst kind of economic crisis with low growth and high inflation."

He noted that the deadline for nominations expired yesterday and Stefan Löfven - former prime minister of Sweden - has submitted a candidacy.

"I am happy about this nomination, he has been a very successful Prime Minister, for two terms already," commented Stanishev.

Sergey Stanishev previously served as Prime Minister of Bulgaria from 2005 to 2009. He was the leader of the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) from 2001 to 2014 and Member of the National Assembly from 1997 to 2014.

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