Andrey Lukanov

Andrey Lukanov Андрей Луканов
40th Prime Minister of Bulgaria
In office 3 February 1990 – 7 December 1990
President	Petar Mladenov Zhelyu Zhelev
Preceded by	Georgi Atanasov
Succeeded by	Dimitar Popov
Personal details
Born	26 September 1938 Moscow, USSR
Died	2 October 1996(1996-10-02) (aged 58) Sofia, Bulgaria
Political party	Bulgarian Socialist Party (1990-1996) Bulgarian Communist Party (1963-1990)
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Andrey Karlov Lukanov (Bulgarian: Андрей Карлов Луканов) (September 26, 1938 - October 2, 1996) was a Bulgarian politician. He was the last communist Prime Minister of Bulgaria.

Biography

Early life

Lukanov was born in Moscow, USSR, in the family of Karlo Lukanov, (1897-1982), a Bulgarian communist émigré. Lukanov's family moved back to Bulgaria after the communist takeover of 1944 when Lukanov was only 6 years old. His father became an important figure in the party and served as foreign minister 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 February 3, 1990; serving until December 7, 1990. Midway through his tenure, the Communist Party rebranded itself as the Bulgarian Socialist Party. He oversaw the first democratic elections in Bulgaria since 1931 in June. His party won and was able to continue to govern.

He offered to form a coalition with the opposition but they repeatedly rejected his offers, arguing that the former Communist Party must shoulder responsibility for past political crimes and the rapidly deteriorating economy. His years in office were marked by corruption , huge consumer goods deficit, and civil unrest. Finally in December, after large demonstrations and a general strike, Lukanov resigned, allowing a technocratic government to be formed by Dimitar Popov.

Lukanov was charged with embezzlement 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. He is also sometimes held responsible for Bulgaria's foreign debt.

Lukanov remained an active political participant in the Socialist Party until his death. In 1995, he began criticizing various members who he believed were not reformist enough and or had Stalinist tendencies.

Assassination

Outside the Sofia apartment where he lived, Lukanov was assassinated on 2 October 1996. 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, 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.