Peace Council: only Bulgaria & Hungary from EU
The US president is currently announcing the ‘Peace Council.’ This involves the creation of a new international body called the ‘Board/Peace Council’ (in public discourse it has become known as the ‘Peace Council’ or ‘Board of Peace’), which is presented as a tool for peacemaking—initially focusing on Gaza—but will gradually expand as a ‘crisis management’ forum for other conflicts as well.
What the ‘Peace Council’ is – and why it raises suspicion
According to Reuters, Trump has sent invitations to around 60 countries, aiming for a body that ‘starts with Gaza’ and ‘expands’ to other fronts, while the same report mentions that permanent participation is expected for those who pay $1 billion and that Trump will be chairman for life.
The existence of a ‘ticket’ for a permanent seat (and at an amount that functions as a power filter rather than an equal contribution) is the first major source of European distrust: it turns the body into a closed club, favoring the ‘willing’ and the financially powerful, rather than a process of legitimacy through international treaties.
The second source of distrust is the political structure: in a Reuters report about Italy, it is mentioned that Rome considers participation in an organization ‘led solely by the U.S. president’ to be in conflict with the Italian constitutional principle requiring equal participation in international organizations. Italy’s argument encapsulates European concern: the ‘Council’ does not resemble a multilateral institution but rather a mechanism of American hegemony, where access, duration, and renewal of tenure (according to what has leaked about the draft charter) are directly linked to the central will of the U.S. president.
The third problem is institutional overlap. In a television excerpt/transcript from CNN (Situation Room), the ‘peace council’ already appears as a point of tension between Trump and Macron, with Trump escalating rhetoric and using trade threats in a domain that would ‘normally’ belong to diplomacy and collective security. This combination of ‘hard power’ (tariffs) with ‘peacemaking architecture’ (board) is the main warning sign for Brussels: it turns peacemaking into a tool of coercion.
Greece absent, as is the rest of the EU, except Hungary and Bulgaria
In Greek reporting, Athens appears aligned with general European reluctance. This is a strategic choice: due to geography and sovereignty issues, Greece has historically invested in strict adherence to International Law and the UN institutional framework.
This logic also underpins the statement by government spokesperson Pavlos Marinakis regarding Greenland—that ‘we cannot play with issues of International Law.’
At the same time, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis ultimately misses Davos because his flight to Zurich was canceled due to severe weather, resulting in a cut program since he had to immediately travel to Brussels for the EU emergency summit.
Turnout in Bulgaria’s October Elections only 44%
Turnout in Bulgaria’s 29 October local elections was 44.94, in line with preliminary forecasts by sociologists. More than 2 713 000 voters went to the polls out of a total of just over 6 038 000 on the electoral rolls. This can be seen from the data published on the Central Election Commission website. In the previous local elections in 2019, the turnout in the first round was higher – 49.76%. Ballot voting will be held again on November 5, 2023. This is the 5th postpandemic elections in Bulgaria and 20th since 2005.
Government Elections in Bulgaria (2005-2022):
2005 Parliamentary Elections
2006 Presidential Elections
2007 Municipal Elections
2009 Parliamentary Elections
2009 European Parliament elections
2011 Presidential Elections
2011 Local Elections
2013 Early parliamentary elections
2014 Early Parliamentary Elections
2015 Municipal Elections
2016 Presidential election
2017 Parliamentary elections
2019 European Parliament election (23-26 May)
2019 Bulgarian local elections
2019 Municipal Elections
2021 April National Parliament election
2021 Second National Parliament election
2021 Third National Parliament and Presidential elections
2022 October elections for 48th National Assembly after the fall of a four-party coalition in June 2022.
