site.btaDSB-Sofia Launches Petition Against Russian Enclave at Iskar Reservoir

Democrats for Strong Bulgaria - Sofia (DSB-Sofia) has launched a petition calling for the restoration of Bulgarian State control over a property on the shores of the Iskar Reservoir, which has been used for decades by the Russian Federation without a legal basis, the party's press office said on Tuesday.

The issue first came to public attention in 2023 following an investigation by Radio Free Europe, which revealed that Russia was using over 11,000 sq m of land located within the sanitary protection zone of the Iskar Reservoir, the main drinking water source for more than 1.5 million Bulgarians. The land is part of a larger 19.5-hectare property, designated under Paragraph 4 of the Agricultural Land Ownership and Use Act. The plot is marked with signs declaring it a "property of the Russian Federation.", the party said.

Despite inquiries from journalists, institutions did not provide official responses at the time. The State Agency for National Security reportedly launched an investigation, the results of which remain unknown.

The matter resurfaced in July 2025 when Sofia municipal councillor Bonka Vasileva (Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria) renewed calls for accountability and transparency regarding the site. “The issue goes beyond legal uncertainty. The presence of a property with unclear ownership status, used by representatives of a state that has officially declared Bulgaria a ‘hostile country,’ in such a critical zone poses a direct and systemic threat to national security,” Vasileva said following an on-site inspection.

The property, identified as 22472.7405.1, is not officially registered in Bulgaria’s property database, has no title deed, and is not listed as a diplomatic site with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However, two buildings and a private dock have been constructed on it, reportedly used periodically by staff from the Russian Embassy.

Russia claims historical rights to the site based on a diplomatic note stating it was granted in the 1950s as “a gift from Georgi Dimitrov [the first leader of the Communist People's Republic of Bulgaria from 1946 to 1949] to the Russian people,” originally to the Society of Soviet Citizens and later to the Russian Embassy. Bulgarian authorities, however, have never confirmed this with documentation.

In November 2023, the Sofia Regional Administration sent formal inquiries to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Agriculture Regional Directorate. The latter confirmed the land falls under Paragraph 4 status and lacks clear ownership. The Foreign Ministry reaffirmed Bulgaria’s position that there is no legal basis to recognize Russian ownership of the property.

Despite the official position, further action has been hampered by bureaucratic delays and the diplomatic complexity of the case.

Against this backdrop, DSB-Sofia announced the launch of a petition demanding that the Bulgarian State reclaim control of the site and end what the party describes as the Russian Federation’s unlawful presence on national territory.