Bulgaria intelligence agency leadership changes

In early July 2026 the Bulgarian National Assembly approved a second five‑year term for Anton Gochev as chairman of the State Agency for Intelligence (DAR). Two weeks later the parliament confirmed Plamen Tonchev as head of the State Security Agency (DANS). Both appointments followed the 2025 reform that transferred the selection of senior intelligence officials from the council of ministers to the legislature, highlighting partisan splits over security leadership.

On 29 July 2026 the cabinet voted to relieve Georgi Georgiev of his post as deputy chairman of DANS, after he asked to end his mandate early. Georgiev, appointed by a caretaker government in June 2024 for a term ending in July 2028, was replaced, leaving the agency with a single deputy, Stanko Stanev, whose security clearance has been contested by opposition politicians but defended by President Rumen Radev. The reshuffle coincided with the reappointment of Tonchev as DANS head and the cabinet’s approval of its July‑December legislative programme, which includes 55 draft laws aligned with EU commitments.

These developments underscore ongoing turbulence within Bulgaria’s intelligence‑security apparatus, as the governing coalition consolidates control over agency leadership while opposition forces continue to scrutinise appointments and clearance procedures.