Bulgaria has threatened to block new EU sanctions against Russia

Bulgaria will not support the European Union’s 21st package of sanctions against Russia unless Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church and Lukoil co-founder Vagit Alekperov are removed from the list.

Bulgarian President Rumen Radev made this statement during a speech in parliament.

According to him, Sofia insists on removing these two individuals from the sanctions list, arguing that this is necessary to protect the country’s energy interests.

Commenting on possible sanctions against Patriarch Kirill, Radev noted that what matters to him is not the individual himself, but the fact that he heads the Russian Orthodox Church.

Source: BNR News.

The European Union is developing new mechanisms to restrict entry for certain categories of Russian citizens. Specifically, this concerns Russian military personnel who participated in the war against Ukraine.

Ukraine has imposed a new package of sanctions against Russian commanders who directed missile strikes on Ukrainian cities, as well as against ships providing military logistics support to Russia.