Radev urges EU to take position on Lukoil refinery sale

Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev said on 15 October 2026 that the European Union should take a position on attacks on civilian ships, stating: “This unacceptable aggression must end.” He stressed that the Black Sea is not only a security zone but a strategic corridor for transporting food, fertiliser and energy resources, on which millions of people depend.

Radev said he does not support the targeting of refineries, including Russian refineries in Ukraine, adding that the effects are returning to Bulgaria as fuel prices rise. He noted that Europe has closed many refineries over the past 20 years and is largely dependent on imports, particularly of diesel and aviation fuel.

Radev said Lukoil is an important facility not only for Bulgaria but for the entire EU, yet its future is being decided outside the EU and Bulgaria. He said he had called on EU leadership to take a position and was seeking support from other partners. BNR's Brussels correspondent Angelina Piskova reported that no bilateral meeting between Radev and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was planned.