[26] Radev strongly criticised the deal, accusing the government of authoritarianism and stated that he believed it had agreed to downgrades in the jets' avionics and armament, in order to get a lower purchasing price, which he also deemed too high for what they are worth.

[44] The two continued to clash over the coming days, with Radev frequently criticising the government for its handling of the state of emergency and accusing it of quote mining the World Health Organization for political gains.

[48] In June 2020, photographs emerged that purported to show what appeared to be Prime Minister Borisov lying half-naked on a bed, next to a nightstand featuring a handgun and stacks of euro banknotes.

He also accused former Ombudswoman Maya Manolova, TV star Slavi Trifonov and his own former second in command Tsvetan Tsvetanov (who had just left and condemned the ruling party) of involvement in a plot to take photos of him while he was sleeping in a "KGB-Style" kompromat operation.

This, alongside the photo scandal and an incident on a Burgas beach significantly impacted the credibility of Borisov's government, leading to the beginning of large-scale anti-government protests, which Radev openly supported.

[57] In his address to the opening session of the National Assembly, Radev expressed hope for a regular cabinet, highlighting the many issues facing Bulgaria: including poverty, the COVID-pandemic and corruption, however he also called on parties to avoid forming "unprincipled" coalitions.

[62] Radev announced that the caretaker government's priorities would be to organise fair elections without vote buying, sort out the supply of vaccines and present a Recovery and Development Plan to the European Union.

On 6 December, President Radev gave the first exploratory mandate for government formation to the leaders of PP, Kiril Petkov and Asen Vasilev, asking them to form a "diverse", "non-personalist" cabinet.

While Radev criticised the request for video tapes by the General Prosecutors Office, he refused to remove Gen. Emil Tonev from his position, citing the motivation as "surface-level and unreasonable" and accusing the Petkov government of trying to "politicise the security services".

Addressing the opening session of the newly elected 48th National Assembly on October 19, Radev expressed hope that it would finally bring the country out of political deadlock and form a regular cabinet, while also cautioning MPs away from entanglement in foreign wars.

[123] The cabinet failed its investiture vote on 14 December, with Radev seeing the main reason for its failure он the fact that GERB had bet on "peoples amnesia" about their period in government, which not take place.

[137][138] BSP sent an official complain to the OSCE and PACE alleging illegal meddling by the caretaker government and president in their internal politics, as well as the election campaign after an interview by justice minister Krum Zarkov criticising the party leadership.

[144] During the opening session, Radev gave a speech calling for parties to put aside their differences and engage in dialogue in order to "leave the political crisis" and "defend our European pathway, as well as our future as a democratic society".

[147] Following the consultations, Radev decided to postpone the handing of the first mandate to GERB in order to allow the parliament to pass laws- specifically in relation to the budget, EU Plan for Recovery and Sustainability, as well as Schengen.

[155] Visiting the summit of the European Political Community on 1 June, Radev continued to criticise the proposed Denkov-Gabriel government, declaring that he did not expect "the kiss between Borisov and Petkov to produce anything but disgust, and certainly not trust or development", further claiming that the leaked audiotapes "removed the cute Euroatlanticist facade and revealed the concerning face of a rising dictatorship and fanaticism.

[163] Despite some speculation, however, Radev was quick to sign into law the removal of Ivan Geshev from his position as General Prosecutor on 15 June, only a few days after the vote passed within the Supreme Judicial Council.

[167] On 10 July, shortly after a controversial meeting with Zelensky, Radev criticised the current government's economic and foreign policy- believing that "Bulgaria should not join the Eurozone at any cost, but only when it is ready" and condemning the transfer of military aid to Ukraine.

[174] In a statement to the media, following his speech on Mount Shipka, Radev commented the recent assassination of Bulgarian businessman Aleksei Petrov accused the government of "trying to use its failures in order to gain more power" and dismissed the idea of holding a "Consultative Council of National Security" due to the presence of "people from the tapes and their allies in the dark".

[184] After the local elections, Radev refused to dismiss the Chief of DANS, who the government claimed had authorised the release of misleading report made by one of his deputies which undermined trust in the electoral system.

[188] During the traditional New Years Address, Radev lamented that the future development of Bulgaria as a "free European democracy" was impossible in an atmosphere of "war with national symbols and historical memory", "political hypocrisy" and "tolerance for corruption".

[196][197][198] Such speculation intensified after the creation of an initiative committee to hold a referendum for the preservation of Third of March as the national holiday, which was joined by a number of people close to the president, including presidential adviser, Alexander Marinov.

[202] Speaking on Mount Shipka as part of the Liberation Day celebrations on the Third of March, Radev thanked those who had gathered and creditted them with "defeating" the government effort to change the date of the National Holiday.

[203] Оn 14 June, Radev vetoed the recently passed "Law on the Judicial Power", which would have separated the investigative branch from the competency of the General Prosecutor, citing the fact that such a system had existed prior to 2009 and was replaced in order to adhere to EU norms.

[230] On 18 March, Radev officially gave the first mandate to the GERB-SDS PM-candidate, Mariya Gabriel, in the presence of a mixed delegation of GERB and PPDB MPs, as well as the acting prime minister Nikolay Denkov.

On the 7th of September, during a visit to the town of Radnevo, Radev made a statement which (while not explicitly implicating Peevski) implied that his role in the state must be diminished and characterised him as an existential threat to Bulgaria's future.

However, speaking to the media on the 9th of October, Radev suggested that state institutions (including the caretaker cabinet) were not doing enough to prevent vote-buying, implying that a double-standard existent in treating offenders depending on political affiliation.

[313] On 24 January 2018, Radev condemned the Turkish invasion of northern Syria aimed at ousting U.S.-backed Syrian Kurds from the enclave of Afrin, and insisted that the European Union should intervene to stop it.

[325] The unofficial meeting, which according to both sides had taken place in a pleasant and constructive atmosphere, provoked severely negative reactions from North Macedonian politicians, after a photo of the two President's was published in which only the Bulgarian flag was present.

[329] Radev participated in a "prayer for peace" within the Central Sofia Synagogue, together with many other Bulgarian politicians, expressing disgust at "the cruel and violent acts committed by the terrorists" and solidarity with Israel.

[334][335] Radev has been very critical of the positions of Austria and the Netherlands, who in December 2022 announced they would veto the ascension of Bulgaria into the Schengen Area, calling the decision "cynical" and in contrast with the concept of European solidarity.