Bulgaria: The unforeseen effects of the Presidency
Bulgarian politicians and officials will have to challenge the stereotypes about Bulgaria during their six month presidency and learn to strike coalitions in the EU
Experts & Staff
Vessela Tcherneva
Deputy Director
Areas of expertise
EU foreign policy; Western Balkans and Black Sea regions; transatlantic relations; regional studies; energy
Languages
Bulgarian, English, German, Russian
Biography
Vessela Tcherneva is deputy director of the European Council on Foreign Relations. Her topics of focus include EU foreign policy and the Western Balkans and Black Sea region.
Between January and July 2022, she held the position of Foreign Policy Advisor to the Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov. From 2010 to 2013, she was the spokesperson for the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and a member of Foreign Minister Nickolay Mladenov’s political cabinet. Previously, she was secretary of the International Commission on the Balkans, chaired by former Italian Prime Minister Giuliano Amato and former German President Richard von Weizsäcker; supervising editor of the Foreign Policy Bulgaria magazine; and political officer at the Bulgarian Embassy in Washington, DC. Tcherneva holds an MA in Political Science from the Rhienische Friedrich-Wilhelm Universität in Bonn.
What Europe can do for the Western Balkans
It is high time for the EU to move beyond ‘stabilocracy’ and stand up to ethnic nationalist kleptocrat political leaders
What is left from Kohl’s era?
Much has changed, yet paradoxically, perhaps Europe is closer now to its 1990s vision than it has ever been
Views from the Capitals: Working with President Macron
Macron’s win was received with a sigh of relief across Europe, but what follows cannot be “politics as usual”. Can he garner support in the European Union?
European Reactions to Macron’s Victory
This week, rather than putting out our ordinary podcast, we're leaving the floor to Manuel Lafont Rapnouil, head of ECFR Paris, who's hosting a discussion…
Views from the Capitals on the French election
Nouveau podcast de notre série sur l'élection présidentielle de 2017 ayant pour objectif de traiter les thèmes d'actualité et de contribuer au débat…
MacMeltdown: Understanding the political crisis in Macedonia
The ongoing crisis in Macedonia could become destabilizing for the region unless the EU takes more decisive action
New chaos in the Balkans: what role left for the EU?
Mark Leonard talks with the director of ECFR's office in Sofia, Vessela Tcherneva and the director of ECFR's Wider Europe programme, Fredrik Wesslau about the…
European and foreign policy implications of Bulgaria’s election
Borissov will probably have to make some symbolic shifts on foreign policy, but he is likely to do his best to be constructive within the EU
Will Turkey’s constitutional referendum kill its EU aspirations?
ECFR’s director Mark Leonard speaks with Soli Özel, ECFR Council Member and Professor of International Relations at Kadir Has University in Istanbul and ECFR's Vessela…
Publications
The path to recognition: Kosovo’s and Serbia’s evolving dialogue
The solution to the dispute between Kosovo and Serbia should be to create a societal consensus on both sides of the border
Health sovereignty: How to build a resilient European response to pandemics
Europe must improve its early warning systems, supply chain resilience, medical R&D, and cyber security and technology, to act decisively in future emergencies
Together in trauma: Europeans and the world after covid-19
A new survey shows that, after the onset of the covid-19 crisis, there has been a rise in public support for unified EU action to tackle global threats
Absorb and conquer: An EU approach to Russian and Chinese integration in Eurasia
Europe shouldn’t be afraid of Russian and Chinese efforts to integrate the Eurasian landmass, but should absorb them into its international order
Return to instability: How migration and great power politics threaten the Western Balkans
EU’s weakness is prompting a new scramble for power for the Balkans with Russia, Turkey and other actors
European Foreign Policy Scorecard 2016
The sixth ECFR Foreign Policy Scorecard highlights the EU’s diminishing ability to influence its neighbours, and the neighbourhood’s growing impact on the EU
Rebooting EU Foreign Policy
The EU is ill-equipped to respond to foreign policy crises
Articles
Depopulation blues: How immigration can counter emigration in the Balkans
To tackle the political and economic challenges posed by shrinking populations, Balkan governments need to approach immigration as an opportunity, rethinking their policies and political messaging
Before it’s too late: How the EU should support the Western Balkans’ EU accession
With Russia’s war on Ukraine raging on its eastern border, EU enlargement in the Western Balkans has a new geopolitical urgency. The EU must commit to supporting their accession – and a fixed date like 2030 alongside a staged approach will add credibility to this commitment
Cautious optimism: What Bulgaria’s new government means for Europe
After a year of interim governments, Bulgaria’s new administration has halted Bulgaria’s march to illiberalism and provided some hope for the region
The future of the European Political Community
As Europe’s leaders meet in Moldova, the potential of the European Political Community to contribute to security and foster connection across the continent is becoming ever clearer
Easy prey? Russia’s influence in Bulgaria
Newly released investigations have shed light on how corruption and the weak rule of law in Bulgaria enable Russian influence to thrive
Democratic renewal in Europe: Bulgaria joins a growing trend
It has taken three general elections for change to come in Bulgaria – but this week’s parliamentary vote gives cause to hope for genuine action on corruption
Western Balkans in trouble: Why the EU should make a new offer to the region
The EU currently lacks tools to make a real difference to stability in the Western Balkans. But it can create these tools if it musters the political will
Pandemic trends: Serbia looks east, Ukraine looks west
Public attitudes in Ukraine and Serbia raise pressing questions about EU enlargement. If member states are to sustain this process, they will need to base it on a shared sense of belonging
The end of tit-for-tat politics in Bulgaria
In an environment in which European and American interests are not always the same, it is short-sighted and dangerous for Bulgarian leaders to question their country’s geopolitical alignment
How Biden can make a big difference in the Western Balkans
Joe Biden has a longstanding relationship with the Western Balkans. A re-energised US policy on the region could be transformative, especially when working in tandem with the EU
Podcasts
NATO at 75: The future of European defence
Vessela Tcherneva welcomes Camille Grand, Camille Lons, Marta Prochwicz Jazowska, and Jana Puglierin to discuss the 75th NATO summit, and how Europe can defend itself with less America
Europe is shifting: EU election results could divide Europe
In this new episode, Vessela Tcherneva welcomes head of ECFR offices to discuss national implications of the EU elections
The future of European politics
Mark Leonard welcomes the heads of ECFR’s national offices to discuss key players outside the traditional halls of European power
How the EU should respond to Belarus
What will be the impact of the EU and US measures against Belarus? And what should be next steps also ahead of the EU-US summit on 15 June?
China’s strategic approach to the Western Balkans
How much influence does China already have in the Western Balkans and how should European policymakers react?
Belarus’s brutal politics
What kind of implications do the developments in Belarus have for the wider neighbourhood and Europe?
Europe’s role in America’s election
How will and can Europeans react in the event of a post-election chaos in the US? The election day is fast approaching yet the outcome still…
The Biden effect and the future of US-Europe relations | Part II
After last week’s discussion with Matt Duss and Jeremy Shapiro, Mark Leonard follows up by gathering the European views on a possible Biden win and…
The first beneficiaries of 1989
Host Mark Leonard has an intimate discussion with our heads of offices from Sofia and Warsaw, Vessela Tcherneva and Piotr Buras about their experiences, hopes…
How to deal with our Western Balkan neighbours?
North Macedonia and Albania wanted to start negotiations with the EU after having been candidate countries since 2005 and 2014. But the enlargement plans seemed…
Events
20 May
28 Mar
Rethinking & Reshaping: EU Enlargement in times of war
Russia’s war against Ukraine has prompted European policymakers to rethink their approach to enlargement. What form does this new approach take, what are the opportunities for EU and candidate countries, and what is the European Political Community’s role?
6 Mar
United West, divided from the rest? Come europei, cinesi, indiani, russi ed americani guardano alla guerra
Nell’attuale contesto internazionale, le relazioni dell’Europa con le potenze globali stanno cambiando rapidamente, e la loro evoluzione rappresenta un elemento di analisi ineludibile nel delineare la strategia di politica estera dell’UE
8 Nov
The role of Germany in Europe in times of war: Potential for German-Bulgarian cooperation
We will discuss Germany’s role in Europe and will reflect on how the new European order is viewed in Berlin
28 Oct
Kosovo-Serbia Relations: The Circle of (Dis)Trust and (Un)Equality /Belgrade Security Forum 2021/
After more than eleven years of the EU facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina, this process could be described as “one step forward, two steps back”. The seriousness of challenges that constantly emerge in relations between Kosovo and Serbia shows that despite the goodwill and dedication of the Western stakeholders, domestic democratic capacities, nationalistic politics, geopolitics, and third players hinder the possibility of reaching a comprehensive solution
5 Oct
Waves of ambition: Russia’s military build-up in the Black Sea
What can the EU and NATO do to reduce the risk of escalation in the region?
27 Apr
Конкурентоспособност на българската икономика в контекста на Европейската зелена сделка
This event will be in Bulgarian but simultaneous translation into English will be provided
16 Dec
NATO in a multipolar world
The European Council on Foreign Relations is delighted to invite you to a discussion on the role of the NATO in a world of revived geopolitical competition with a focus on the potential of the transatlantic alliance
25 Nov
In the media
It should be noted that the changes in the CACIAF, this Ordinance, which the National Assembly continues to be unwilling to adopt, makes it virtually impossible to investigate high-level corruption
Vessela Tcherneva commented on the new report of the European Commission. The institution approves of the introduced changes but is disappointed by the shortcomings in the fight against corruption
There are currently very important talks in Europe for the next 5 years, in which, unfortunately, Bulgaria is not participating
Vessela Tcherneva on the European Commissioner posts and the future of EU-US relations under a new Trump administration
The future is policy changes, but a very clear sanitary cordon in between them
Vessela Tcherneva comments for Bloomberg TV Bulgaria on what will happen to the politics not only of Europe, but also of the US. In the interview you can also hear how the processes on the other side of the ocean will affect here and how the growing political divide in Europe will develop
Ursula von der Leyen is forced to gather vote by vote support and will rely on the votes of Italian MEPs
Vessela Tcherneva commented on the processes in the European Parliament. Ursula von der Leyen’s re-election will not be as simple as initially expected
Meloni will continue to surprise us because he has become a measure of how a party on the far right can be pulled towards the centre
Ahead are crucial for Europe parliamentary elections in France, the determination of the EU leaders, elections in the UK and Europe’s readiness, if Trump is elected, to quickly stand alone in its defence, which it frivolously underestimated