BULGARIA has reiterated in a diplomatic note its rejection of Russian claims of ownership of Bulgartabac property.
The Foreign Ministry delivered its reply to Russian ambassador Vladimir Titov on December 26, a week after receiving the latest letter from Moscow. Russia bases its claims to Bulgartabac on post-World War 2 reparations.
Bulgaria's stance is that all claims have been dealt with.
"The Bulgarian position remains unchanged," Foreign Minister Solomon Passi said last Saturday.
Passi said that the Russian note presented no new evidence and that Russia's purported documentary proof was outdated.
In line with the statement by Passi, Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Vassilev said that the property in question was purchased by Bulgaria in the late 1940s and 1950s. Bulgaria was ready to present the necessary documentation if needed, he said.
The controversy was reignited shortly before the submission of the binding offers for the privatisation of Bulgartabac Holding.
The move took place despite a statement by President Georgi Purvanov in early autumn, who said that he and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had agreed that the issue would be removed from the agenda of bilateral relations.
A month after the talks, however, no official agreement followed the reported deal between Purvanov and Putin.
Passi said that the issue was a top priority for Bulgaria and that a special inter-governmental committee had been established to deal with it.
In response to the Russian warning that if the issue was not resolved, it would seek to recover what it described as its property from the new owner of Bulgartabac, Passi said that the issue had to be resolved on an inter-governmental level and that all claims should be directed to the Bulgarian state.
The Foreign Ministry explained the move as a protective measure aimed at averting any failure of the privatisation procedure.
Following the budget agreement between the Bulgarian Government and the mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Finance Minister Milen Velchev said that the privatisation deal of Bulgartabac would be finalised this year despite all the court battles of 2002.
Meanwhile, director of the Privatisation Agency Apostol Apostolov said on December 26 that the agency was planning to demand an enhancement of the Bulgartabac offers. He said that the privatisation procedure was being resumed in compliance with the decision of the Supreme Administrative Court (SAC).
The agency already contacted the privatisation consultant Creditanstalt Investment Bank with a request to renew the data in the information hall at Bulgartabac Holding. The aim was to respond to all inquiries by interested parties within six months.
Apostolov expressed expectations that the consultant would need a month to prepare an update of the information, while the candidates in turn would be allowed between three and five days to study any new aspects.
Apostolov said that the candidates that were sure to get an invitation for the bid were Tobacco Holding and Rosbulgartabac.
The Foreign Ministry delivered its reply to Russian ambassador Vladimir Titov on December 26, a week after receiving the latest letter from Moscow. Russia bases its claims to Bulgartabac on post-World War 2 reparations.
Bulgaria's stance is that all claims have been dealt with.
"The Bulgarian position remains unchanged," Foreign Minister Solomon Passi said last Saturday.
Passi said that the Russian note presented no new evidence and that Russia's purported documentary proof was outdated.
In line with the statement by Passi, Deputy Prime Minister Nikolai Vassilev said that the property in question was purchased by Bulgaria in the late 1940s and 1950s. Bulgaria was ready to present the necessary documentation if needed, he said.
The controversy was reignited shortly before the submission of the binding offers for the privatisation of Bulgartabac Holding.
The move took place despite a statement by President Georgi Purvanov in early autumn, who said that he and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin had agreed that the issue would be removed from the agenda of bilateral relations.
A month after the talks, however, no official agreement followed the reported deal between Purvanov and Putin.
Passi said that the issue was a top priority for Bulgaria and that a special inter-governmental committee had been established to deal with it.
In response to the Russian warning that if the issue was not resolved, it would seek to recover what it described as its property from the new owner of Bulgartabac, Passi said that the issue had to be resolved on an inter-governmental level and that all claims should be directed to the Bulgarian state.
The Foreign Ministry explained the move as a protective measure aimed at averting any failure of the privatisation procedure.
Following the budget agreement between the Bulgarian Government and the mission of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Finance Minister Milen Velchev said that the privatisation deal of Bulgartabac would be finalised this year despite all the court battles of 2002.
Meanwhile, director of the Privatisation Agency Apostol Apostolov said on December 26 that the agency was planning to demand an enhancement of the Bulgartabac offers. He said that the privatisation procedure was being resumed in compliance with the decision of the Supreme Administrative Court (SAC).
The agency already contacted the privatisation consultant Creditanstalt Investment Bank with a request to renew the data in the information hall at Bulgartabac Holding. The aim was to respond to all inquiries by interested parties within six months.
Apostolov expressed expectations that the consultant would need a month to prepare an update of the information, while the candidates in turn would be allowed between three and five days to study any new aspects.
Apostolov said that the candidates that were sure to get an invitation for the bid were Tobacco Holding and Rosbulgartabac.
