EU member criticizes bloc’s latest Russia sanctions proposal

Brussels should focus on restoring diplomacy with Moscow, Bulgaria’s new government has said

The EU’s latest Russia sanctions package proposal includes counter-productive measures that could backfire on its own member states, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Velislava Petrova has said.

The government of Ukraine-skeptic Prime Minister Rumen Radev, who assumed office in May, are reportedly “digging their heels in” against European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s proposal.

Sofia has concerns about a number of measures being pushed by Brussels, though the country’s government does not oppose sanctions that could help bring Moscow and Kiev closer to peace talks, Petrova said on Wednesday.

“We support sanctions that have a real economic effect, but do not lead to greater damage for the member states than [Russia],” she said.

Bulgaria depends on Russian energy supplies and is wary of measures targeting Russia’s energy sector. The minister said the government “prioritizes national energy stability” and has red lines similar to other EU members.

Bulgaria opposes EU on military aid for Ukraine

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The election in April of Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, a former fighter pilot, reportedly alarmed officials in Brussels, as Radev has openly questioned whether Ukraine can defeat Russia militarily and has called for dialogue with Moscow to be restored.

Earlier this month, Sofia announced that it was suspending military assistance to Kiev. Radev has argued that Ukraine’s main problem is a shortage of manpower rather than weapons, and said the EU cannot realistically present itself as a mediator while openly taking Ukraine’s side.

Sanctions on Russian church leader called ‘pinnacle of absurdity’

Sofia also objects to “sanctions that are primarily symbolic,” Petrova added, claiming Brussels’ proposal to sanction Patriarch Kirill, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church (ROC), which Kiev and Brussels claim is a Russian state actor, could be viewed as religious persecution.

Kiev has cracked down on the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, an autonomous denomination with spiritual ties to Moscow, through prosecution of senior clerics on charges of associating with Russia, as well as forced evictions from key churches and monasteries.

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The EU’s attempts to target the patriarch since 2022 were blocked by former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. With Orban now out of office, Brussels has renewed the attempt.

The ROC has denounced the proposal as the “pinnacle of absurdity.”