site.btaThink Tank Sends Letter of Concern to EU Leaders Regarding Rule of Law, Political Repression in Bulgaria

In a letter addressed to European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, European Council President Antonio Costa, and European Commission President Ursula Von Der Leyen, Bulgarian NGO Analyses & Alternatives expresses concern regarding the rule of law and political repression in Bulgaria.

“We, the citizens of Bulgaria, who believe in the European project and stand in solidarity with EU policy, express our deep concern about systematic attacks on democracy and the rule of law in our country. After decades of efforts to integrate into the EU and NATO, we are witnessing an alarming erosion of institutional independence and a rise in authoritarian practices. Dominant political and economic players have skilfully exploited our desire for European integration to strengthen clientelist networks and strategic corruption, which is corroding the institutional and legal order in Bulgaria,” the letter reads. 

According to the NGO, key state bodies – the prosecution service and parts of the judiciary, the anti-corruption commissions, the administration – are being used as instruments of repression against political opponents. “We are witnessing a selective attack by all state authorities and the prosecution against the only pro-European parliamentary opposition – the Continue the Change party and the Democratic Bulgaria coalition – and complete inaction on many other scandalous corruption cases. The Prosecutor General's Office and the Counter-Corruption Commission, controlled by private interests, are acting in the service of a political alliance between Delyan Peevski (sanctioned for corruption in the United Kingdom and under the Magnitsky Act in the United States), leader of MRF - New Beginning party, and Boyko Borissov, leader of GERB. This unspoken but completely obvious political-oligarchic alliance aims to seize power from behind the scenes and replace the democratic process. At the same time, the leaders of the two formations do not allow the immunity of the MPs of the pro-Russian party Vazrazhdane to be lifted for brutal attacks against the representation of the European Commission and the European Parliament in Sofia and against Europeanism in Bulgaria in general,” the authors say.

According to them, the most striking and telling example is the arrest of Varna Mayor Blagomir Kotsev on July 8, 2025, just hours before a vote on a key municipal budget, which he insisted should be transparent. “This act, carried out in blatant violation of the law and on the day of the announcement of our final acceptance into the Eurozone, sends a clear political message: institutions can be used to seize power won in elections and to crush the opposition. Through the prosecutor's office and the courts, the government elected in legitimate elections is being replaced and an attempt is being made to destroy the political opposition!” the NGO warns.

The authors of the letter point out that these brazen repressions coincide with the European Commission’s most critical report to date on the rule of law in Bulgaria (2025), which highlights and demonstrates the deepening failures and systemic problems in the fight against corruption and the independence of the judiciary. 

“We are witnessing attempts to replace Bulgaria's European path with a hybrid pro-Russian model, clearly linked to interests close to the Kremlin. For years, the pro-European opposition has been systematically blocked to prevent it from stopping the circumvention of European sanctions against Russian energy sources, the misuse of European funds, and the lack of control over budget expenditures, left to the discretion of governments maneuvering between the EU and Russia. This creates conditions for corruption, increases public alienation, and legitimizes Russian propaganda,” the letter says.

The think tank calls on the European Parliament, the European Council, and the European Commission to:

- Investigate Delyan Peevski as the main political sponsor of the actions of the security forces and parts of the judiciary aimed at the long-term destabilisation of Bulgaria immediately after its accession to the eurozone, which is an unchanging priority for the Kremlin; 

- Support the resistance of pro-European forces in Bulgarian civil society against the oligarchic and pro-Russian model of governance that is being imposed on the country;

- Condemn the political repression against the pro-European opposition, especially in connection with the completely unjustified and unnecessary detention of Varna Mayor Blagomir Kotsev;

- Link European funding to real structural reforms in the judiciary that will solve systemic problems;

- Strengthen support for the European Public Prosecutor's Office and place the actions of the Bulgarian prosecutor's office, which systematically obstructs its work, under special supervision;

- Closely monitor the distortions of democratic processes in Bulgaria and the circumvention of the law, and impose the necessary sanctions on individuals found guilty of corruption and undermining European values according to objective criteria.

Analyses & Alternatives is a non-governmental organization established as a continuation of many years of work by a group of renowned Bulgarian analysts with expertise in the fields of energy, geopolitics, diplomacy, international relations, security, business and others.