The Prime Minister of Bulgaria chose not to sign the agreement with Ukraine.

It was anticipated that the document would be signed on Thursday during Ganchev's meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Brussels "on the sidelines" of the EU summit. However, the Bulgarian Prime Minister unexpectedly stated that he must first consult with Parliament—even though such an agreement does not require formal ratification.

As a result, the agreement was not signed. Over the past year, Ukraine has signed similar documents with most NATO and EU countries.

As noted by the Bulgarian edition of Azattyq, Ganchev's unexpected decision may lead to the collapse of negotiations to form a new government. Bulgaria has not had a stable cabinet for several years, and there have been multiple early elections that did not yield a clear winner. Currently, negotiations are being conducted by parties whose positions on supporting Ukraine differ. Ganchev leads a technical cabinet of ministers.

The Prime Minister himself explained his decision by stating that he cannot sign an agreement for a duration of ten years without Parliament's consent. His opponents believe that the Prime Minister has played into the hands of Viktor Orban, the Hungarian Prime Minister, who is skeptical about military aid to Ukraine. Orban is scheduled to visit Bulgaria soon.

“Ukrainian Truth” notes that only six out of the 27 EU member states—Bulgaria, Hungary, Austria, Slovakia, Malta, and Cyprus—have not signed an agreement on cooperation with Ukraine in the field of security. Notably, Austria, Malta, and Cyprus are not NATO members, while Hungary and Slovakia pursue policies that differ from most EU and NATO countries by refusing military assistance to Ukraine.

Commentators also highlight a change in position from one of Bulgaria's largest parties, GERB. Since the onset of the Russian invasion, it has supported Ukraine. However, while commenting on a potential cooperation agreement with Ukraine, its leader Boyko Borisov stated that just six months ago his party would have categorically supported such a deal, but today "the situation has changed" due to "increased discussions in Europe and the US about achieving peace in Ukraine." He compared the conclusion of a contract in this context to "buying a factory on September 9" (in Bulgaria, there is a saying "to buy a factory on September 8," which means making a very bad deal. This refers to events from World War II—on September 9, 1944, a pro-Soviet coup occurred in Bulgaria, after which communists came to power and nationalized factories and plants).

In the discussions, Borisov likely referred primarily to the anticipation of peace initiatives from the elected US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly emphasized that he will strive to end the war in Ukraine, hinting at the need for concessions from Kyiv. Viktor Orban, who describes himself as an ally of Trump, according to Bloomberg's report, told EU leaders that he would not agree to extend the sanctions imposed by the European Union against Russia until after Trump's inauguration. These sanctions are renewed every six months, with the next renewal due at the end of January—11 days after Trump takes office.

The absence of a stable government and the rise of nationalist and pro-Russian sentiments, which were reflected in the results of the recent parliamentary elections in Bulgaria, are seen by some analysts as harbingers of a possible shift in the country's foreign policy orientation and even the establishment of an authoritarian regime.