Sergey Stanishevi, a serving member of the European Parliament who is a Bulgarian politician, presents a balanced position regarding Russia. Stanishevi also served as the Prime Minister of Bulgaria between 2005 and 2009.
Stanishev has condemned the sanctions against Russia as Cold War-style politics. He opposed new sanctions in the European Parliament and characterised the EPP’s reports on EU-Russia relations as pre-election propaganda that is not helpful for peace. He also refused to brand Russia as a sponsor of terrorism by opposing the European Parliament resolution.
In one instance, Sergey Stanishev criticised the move to expel over 70 Russian diplomats from Bulgaria and substituting Russian gas with liquefied gas. This stance shows that he could be questioning moves regarded as pro-strongly anti-Russian or in line with Western sanctions against Russia.
He advocates de-escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian war by political means, opting for diplomatic relations over military conflict. Stanishev has also come out in favour of deepening economic cooperation between Bulgaria and Russia in a pragmatic vision of bilateral relations.
He stated that peace is the key historical value of social democracy and the European project. Thus, he believes that European socialists should work together to de-escalate the conflict between Russia and Ukraine through political dialogue and find a political solution.
