The Council of Ministers said EU budget commissioner Piotr Serafin met Prime Minister Rumen Radev in Sofia, and that Radev led the talks. The first announcement named Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Galab Donev as the person Serafin met.

Donev and Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Pekanov were also at the meeting. The topics of the talks, and the positions of Donev and Serafin given in the first announcement, have not changed.

Earlier on this topic: Donev and Serafin discussed EU budget revenue for 2028-2034 in Sofia

They discussed the EU's next long-term budget for 2028–2034, officially called the Multiannual Financial Framework. The main question was where its money will come from.

Radev said Bulgaria is working towards a lower budget deficit for 2027 and is taking into account the effects on the social sector and the economy.

Serafin is responsible for the budget, the fight against fraud and public administration. He said the proposals should be treated as one package, and that agreement will also require concessions.

"We are trying to agree on the right sources of EU budget revenue while avoiding extra strain on national budgets," Donev said.

He called on Europe to keep its ambitions despite the difficulties. Donev said the budget is the EU's main tool for building a richer, more competitive and safer union. He said cohesion policy and the common agricultural policy are decisive for convergence, growth, competitiveness and food security.

Donev said the challenges facing the EU are growing in number and scale and call for an adequate and timely response, but not at the expense of policies set out in the EU treaties. He told Serafin that Bulgaria continues to work for a timely, ambitious, fair and balanced EU budget.

Serafin wants member states to agree on the framework as quickly as possible. "We face an uncertain future, so I hope for a consensus on the Multiannual Financial Framework by the end of the year," the commissioner said.