Deputy prime minister Ivo Hristov says Bulgaria lacks the social conditions for unrest like the protests and vandalism now hitting France. He spoke on BNT's morning show.

Bulgaria has one common language, he said, and no big closed-off ghettos or suburbs where people speak several languages and do not know Bulgarian. Social problems exist, he said. Drugs are not as big a problem as in France, but Hristov does not play it down. He said sparks from the events in France may reach Bulgaria. In his view, Bulgaria's finances are more stable than France's, and the wave of vandalism will hit insurers across Europe, especially in France, and deepen the deficit.

Next year's draft budget relies on a windfall tax on banks and better tax collection, Hristov said. He called the tax "perfectly logical". He said banks have made huge windfall profits over the past year, and in a crisis they make "staggering profits", which is good for liquidity and cheap loans.

Public-sector pay will rise by 5%, and teachers' pay by 7.5%. Pensions will also go up, but he did not say by how much. The ruling parties are betting on productivity, the economy, industry and high technology.

The deficit limit is 3%. Hristov said he does not favour strict limits, but the government will try to stay within this one. Almost nowhere in Europe do countries manage it, he said. He said resources are shared out fairly, and if the sums add up, the right balance has been found. Parliament can change the draft.

Foreign policy must be realistic, Hristov said of the war Russia started against Ukraine in February 2022. "Bulgaria is always against war and never for escalation," he said. He said the country also opposes sending arms to Ukraine, which is defending itself against the invasion, and opposes the continuing "butchery and bloodshed".

"We are against Bulgaria being dragged into foreign geopolitical clashes," he said, using that term for the war in which Russia attacked Ukraine and Ukraine is defending itself.

French commentators and politicians talk of the government losing legitimacy after the protests. Hristov said this means French taxpayers will no longer give "tens of billions" to Ukraine. He expects the same in other countries, such as Germany. He added that Ukraine's main backer in Western Europe is president Emmanuel Macron.

The end of the war Russia started against Ukraine will most likely not be good for Europe, the deputy prime minister said. He said it is best to end it as fast as possible, because a longer war is increasingly harmful. Articles 4 and 5 of the Washington Treaty frighten all NATO members, Hristov said, because invoking them is a step towards escalation and war.

A moratorium in the Black Sea means an end to all hostile military action, he said, but it will not happen at once. Even if Russian attacks on ships and Ukrainian strikes in defence against the invasion stop, the sea holds an unlimited number of mines that will take years to clear. Sunken ships also cause environmental problems, and the high insurance risk keeps shipping firms away.

An inquiry is due into the attacks on ships in Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone. Hristov said people should wait for its result, because the comments of someone with no political responsibility differ from the official position.

The future of the EU in its present form is in doubt, the deputy prime minister said. Nobody wants a return to visas, and open borders and shared means of payment are the fruit of many years of effort, he said. Even so, "Europe may run away from us". Bulgaria must also consider scenarios without the current EU funding, and ones with uncontrolled migration because of instability in the Middle East.