Monitoring of SANS – 2008. Reactions.

On May 12 RiskMonitor presented the results from the first monitoring of the State Agency for National Security (SANS). The press stresses the report's central propositions, namely, that the functions of SANS remain unclear and there is no control over its activities. The institution has also been criticized about the absence of a publicly accessible internet site and that the annual report for its activities has been delayed.

The Trud daily newspaper lays emphasis on the conclusions in the analysis and mainly on the fact that the Agency has to obtain a clearly defined profile of an intelligence institution, instead of being a hybrid with both intelligence and investigative powers.

SANS' Chief Secretary, Mr. Emil Kojuharov, agreed with the main emphasis of the report and spokesperson, Ms. Zoya Dimitrova, assured that very soon the agency will have a publicly accessible website.

The conclusion for the work of SANS a year after its creation is that the Agency is not yet perceived as an effective structure and the lack of National Security Strategy prevents its institutional development.