Bulgarians protest against government, accuse it of being pro-Russian

Hundreds of Bulgarians gathered in the capital Wednesday to protest against the interim government and president for preparing to negotiate with Russia for natural gas supply.

Following calls from right-wing politicians on social media, the activists gathered in front of the presidential building in Sofia.

They demanded the resignation of President Rumen Radev, who is known for his closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and chanted anti-government slogans

Recalling that Russia declared Bulgaria an "enemy country" over its support for Ukraine and that Kremlin-controlled energy giant Gazprom cut off natural gas sales to Bulgaria, the activists argued that Bulgaria should be completely independent from Russia in terms of energy supply.

''Bulgaria, whose gas consumption is already low, does not need Russian natural gas,'' said Stoyan Mihalev, a former deputy from the right-wing Democrats for a Strong Bulgaria party.

Speaking at the rally, the activists said that buying natural gas from Russia indirectly means financing the Putin regime's terror and its war against Ukraine.

The protest ended without incident.