Andrey Karlov Lukanov ( ) (26 September 1938 – 2 October 1996) was a Bulgarian politician. Between February and November 1990, was the final Prime Minister of the People's Republic of Bulgaria.

Biography

Early life

Lukanov was born in Moscow, USSR, in the family of Karlo Lukanov, (1897-1982), a Bulgarian

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

émigré. Lukanov's family moved back to Bulgaria after the communist takeover of

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

when Lukanov was only 6 years old. His father became an important figure in the party and served as

foreign minister A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

of Bulgaria from 1956 to 1961.

Political career

Andrey became a member of the party in 1963 and began a career in the foreign service. He helped represent Bulgaria in the United Nations and Comecon. He rose through the ranks of the foreign service to become minister of foreign economic affairs in 1987, resigning in 1989. Lukanov became a leading member of the reformist wing of the BCP, and took part in the overthrow of longtime leader Todor Zhivkov. He became prime minister on 3 February 1990. This office he held until 7 December 1990. Midway through his tenure, the Communist Party rebranded itself as the

Bulgarian Socialist Party The Bulgarian Socialist Party ( bg, Българска социалистическа партия, translit=Balgarska sotsialisticheska partiya, BSP), also known as The Centenarian ( bg, Столетницата, links=no, translit=Stoletnitsat ...

. Lukanov oversaw the first democratic election which had taken place in Bulgaria since 1931. This election took place in June; the BSP remained the largest party in the national legislature, and Lukanov himself continued in government. Seeking a stable majority, Lukanov offered to form a coalition with the opposition, but his offers were rebuffed. The opposition argued that the former Communist Party must shoulder responsibility for past political crimes and the rapidly deteriorating economy. Lukanov's months in office were marked by corruption , huge consumer goods deficit, and civil unrest. Finally in December, after large demonstrations and a

general strike A general strike refers to a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large co ...

, Lukanov resigned, allowing a technocratic government to be formed by

Dimitar Popov Dimitar Nikolaev Popov ( bg, Димитър Николаев Попов; born 27 February 1970) is a former Bulgarian professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Career In his career Popov played for Levski Sofia, Botev Plovdiv, Sp ...

. Lukanov was charged with

embezzlement Embezzlement is a crime that consists of withholding assets for the purpose of conversion of such assets, by one or more persons to whom the assets were entrusted, either to be held or to be used for specific purposes. Embezzlement is a type ...

in 1992 and arrested, but charges were soon dropped. During his time in the foreign service, Lukanov had gained connections with western businessmen such as Robert Maxwell and engaged in controversial business dealings.

Assassination

Lukanov was

assassinated Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have a ...

on 2 October 1996, оutside the Sofia apartment where he lived. He was shot in the head and chest by a lone gunman who fled and was never captured. A building contractor named Angel Vassilev, who had been close to the incumbent BSP government led by

Zhan Videnov Zhan Vasilev Videnov ( bg, Жан Василев Виденов ; born 22 March 1959), sometimes spelled in English as Jean Videnov, was Prime Minister of Bulgaria from 25 January 1995 until 13 February 1997, a term remembered for the most severe ...

, was arrested and charged (alongside various others) with having organized Lukanov's murder. After a long trial and an initial guilty verdict, the Bulgarian Court of Appeal declared Vassilev and the other defendants to be innocent. Public rumors to the effect that Lukanov would be slain had been in existence for months before the killing was carried out. To this day, the true perpetrators of the assassination remain unknown.

References

External links