STUDENT OF VARNA FREE UNIVERSITY REPRESENTED BULGARIA AS PRIME MINISTER IN BRUSSELS
11 february 2026
Law student Alexander Dukov from Varna Free University represented Bulgaria in the role of Prime Minister during the prestigious student event ConSIMium in Brussels. ConSIMium is a simulation of decision-making at all levels in the Council of the European Union and the European Council and is organised by the General Secretariat of the Council of the EU.
For the fourth consecutive year, students from VFU "Chernorizets Hrabar" became part of the Bulgarian national student team in the simulation experience taking place at the Council of the EU. Over 160 students from the 27 Member States of the European Union are participating in the initiative.
The participants underwent a crash course in European policy-making, and within two days, national teams of six students each participated in two simulated meetings of the European Council and a series of meetings at all levels of the Council of the EU. During the discussions, they defended national positions on proposals for legislative acts of the European Commission.
The decision-makers in Bulgaria's national team this year were two representatives of Varna Free University – the fourth-year Law student Alexander Dukov, who took on the role of Prime Minister, and Maria Kafedzi, a second-year International Business student who was a national expert.
Alexander Dukov is the Deputy Chairman of the Lawyer's Club "Prof. Tamara Hinova" at the Student Council of Varna Free University. He is an active participant in the Civil Law Circle and a member of the Law Clinic at the Faculty of Law of the Varna Free University "Chernorizets Hrabar". Alexander prepared a statement on behalf of the Student Council and the Lawyer's Club on the Law on Amendments and Supplements to the Law on Crediting Students and Doctoral Students (No. 51-554-01-105), which he presented at a meeting of the Committee on Youth and Sports, held on 25 June 2025 in the National Assembly. Subsequently, changes were adopted in favour of students to reduce the interest rate on student loans. He finished the "Geo Milev" Language School in Dobrich with a profiled study of German and English and holds a bachelor's degree in Management, with a master's degree in Accounting and Control.
Maria Kafedzi is a second-year student majoring in International Business with instruction in English at Varna Free University "Chernorizets Hrabar". She is fluent in Greek, English and Spanish. Maria is a member of the Student Council at Varna Free University and of the internal audit committee of the Faculty of Social, Economic and Computer Sciences. She participates in the Erasmus+ programme and in human rights-related initiatives.
This year, the national student delegation also included two students from Sofia University "St Kliment Ohridski" and the University of Economics - Varna. In the role of the minister was Ivaylo Todorov, majoring in International Economic Relations at the University of Economics - Varna. He holds an international diploma from the "Alliance Française" and is a laureate of a conference on European integration. The country's ambassador was Vasilena Uzunova, student of European Studies at Sofia University, who is a member of the European Studies Club at the university. Her fellow student from the Public Administration major Dinko Chavdarov was also a national expert. He is the secretary of the Public Administration Club at the Student Council of Sofia University. In the role of the journalist was Anna Dineva, majoring in International Economic Relations at the University of Economics - Varna.
The coordinator of the Bulgarian national team was Assoc. Prof. Elisaveta Kalinova – Dean of the Faculty of Law at Varna Free University and EU Law lecturer.
During the simulation, the Bulgarian student national team impressed the participants with serious preparation and demonstrated diplomacy in the efforts to reach an agreement between the member states, as well as with the diversity of foreign languages used in the negotiations.
The delegations participated in various working groups of national experts and ambassadors (COREPER – Committee of Permanent Representatives) before the simulation of a meeting of ministers, where a compromise was negotiated. Simulation meetings of the leaders of the EU member states were also held in parallel.
This year, participants in the event met with Herman Van Rompuy, President of the European Council from 2009 to 2014 and Prime Minister of Belgium from 2008 to 2009. The challenge for the students was to “step into the shoes” of decision-makers in multi-level discussions in the Council on international trade. The meetings were led by representatives of Cyprus, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the Council.
The members of the national team received awards and certificates for their participation. The programme also included a visit to the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Bulgaria to the European Union.
Enriched with experience and emotions from the cooperation with students from other European universities, as well as with impressions of the Belgian capital, the participants shared satisfaction with their participation in the project and confidence in the future of Europe.
Photos: Consilium EU