SOFIA: Bulgaria has expelled the head of the Russian Orthodox Church in Sofia and two Belarusian priests for allegedly supporting Moscow’s geopolitical interests, Western media reported on Thursday.
The National Security Agency accused the three priests of implementing Moscow’s hybrid strategy to influence the socio-political processes in Bulgaria in support of Russian geopolitical interests.
Clerics barred from entering Bulgaria for five years
The clerics have been barred from entering Bulgaria for five years.
The Russian embassy in Sofia in a post on the social media platform, Facebook, said that one of the clerics was the representative of the Russian Orthodox Church in Sofia.
It added that the incumbent Bulgarian leadership has set itself the task of destroying the socio-political, cultural and humanitarian ties between Sofia and Moscow. It termed the decision of the Bulgarian government as rude.
A member of the European Union and NATO, Bulgaria is a Slavic and Orthodox country with strong historical and cultural ties with Russia.
However, the relations have been strained since Russia launched a war against Ukraine in February last year. So far Sofia has expelled 70 Russian diplomats.
